Beyond Fullmetal: To Change the World
by Silverleaf2157
Summary: A year after the Promised Day, a new monarchy takes over. With the coming of this new Monarchy, comes great change for the worse. Any and all Alchemists are banished to small ghettos along the border of Amestris. Twenty years have passed sense then, and Pace Mustang is on a mission, a mission to find out just why her people have been banished, with a little help from Terrin Elric.
1. Chapter 1

**{Hey! Silv here! And I know you all are thinking, WHAT? Another new story? Really?! But worry not, my lovely readers, this story is actually NOT my own story! I'm just posting this for a friend outside of FF, and this is purely her idea, and writing. I'm just the co-authoress/Beta , so anything you see in these "{ }" Will be me! The rest is purley Saki-Chan }**

**Hi! Saki-chan here! This is my first posted story**

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><p>Different.<p>

I'm different, a "freak of nature", or so they call me. 'They' being the humans who persecute me and my people.

It doesn't make sense. I was born just as they were; yet, they treat me like an alien. Something they don't like, just because I don't look or act like them, because I'm not 'normal'.

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><p>The wind whips my dark curls into my face, making my blue eyes water. The humans are gaining on me as I jet down the road, their voices raised and fists punching the sky. Cars honk at me, their drivers irritated by the obstruction of their path. I take a sharp and sudden left turn into an alley and squat behind a dumpster.<p>

Why am I here? Sitting among the rotting food and rat poop? Oh, that's right, I have naïve ideals, I want to change the world. I lost Terrin a while ago, so now I'm along, and terrified.

This is going to be a lot harder than I thought.

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><p>I grew up in the faraway town of Pisu, at the outskirts of Amestris's Eastern Territory almost in the desert area. It's a small town with maybe one-hundred people just like me. Each of us have a power greater than any normal human being. We're alchemists, or people who can control or make things out of a certain element. We're all different, yet we're all the same.<p>

There are other towns like this one, little outlawed towns, each filled with their own alchemists. Yume, Hopu, Kikai, and Henko. All these towns are set apart from the rest of humanity. The government lost use of alchemists when Edward Elric and his brother, Alphonse Elric, defeated King Bradley.

Now we're just abominations to the human kind, a threat they government has to keep a watchful eye on. They fear us.

My name is Pace, pronounced 'Pachay', it means 'peace' in Creta. I'm a seventeen year-old girl who loves music and wants to change the world. I inherited my father's deep ebony hair, and have guessed that my electric blue eyes were from my mother, having never met her personally.

And I believed I could do exactly that

As I grew up, my father put me through martial arts, and I loved it! My Master would tell me to "concentrate all your thoughts upon the task at hand. The sun doesn't burn until brought to a focus." It took me years to understand what he meant, and I'm still not quite sure what he meant. My Master always encouraged me to live by the five basic laws of life, or at least what the alchemists believed to be life's laws. Courtesy, Integrity, Perseverance, Self-control, and Indomitable Spirit. I put my heart and soul into my martial art training

My parents, Roy and Riza Mustang, have long since given up on rejoining society. They've been separated for about twenty years now. When the new Overlord threw the alchemists into little rinky-dink towns they lost their hope for the world.

But I believe we can change the world.

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><p>The teacher, Mr. Elric, rambles on and on about public relations, but I'm only partially paying attention. He's a cool teacher, fairly relaxed and laid back, but sometimes I don't believe his heart is here. Like he doesn't feel like being here. Mr. Elric's looks more like a scholar than a teacher. With his thin framed glasses and scruffy short beard. His long hair is pulled back into a pony tail, leaving the shorter pieces to hang in his face. His shoulders are broad, giving him a strong appearance, but he still doesn't look quite like he belongs in a classroom.<p>

Earlier today he was giving us a history lesson, that he abruptly cut off. "There was once a time in which humans and alchemists lived together peacefully. We went to school together, feel in love with each other…" Here Mr. Elric stopped talking. His golden eyes were so full of pain, that it lead me to believe he'd fallen in love with a beautiful young woman in his past. And when the war ended he was forced away…he never to see her again.

It's a sad thought, a doomed love right from the start. Yet, through our sorrows, I can't help thinking how much I wanted to see what it's like outside of my little town.

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><p>Soon class ends and as people rush out the door I stay in my seat. I want to ask Mr. Elric what he knows about the past twenty-five years or so.<p>

"What's wrong, Pace?" Mr. Elric asks, as he nudges the thin framed glasses up higher onto his nose.

"Well, sir, could you tell me more about the years leading to and after Edward defeated King Bradley?" I ask, standing and moving closer to the front of the classroom.

Mr. Elric's eyes widen in shock, maybe even fear, before being replaced by a thoughtful expression. His eyes flicker from me, to the door, and down to his desk. Clearly debating if I was worthy for the tale.

He'd been thinking for a couple minutes before whispering," I'll tell you my tale."

"Why are you whispering?" I asked him.

He stood quickly and closed the door to the classroom door," What I'm about to tell you will NOT go beyond this door. Do you understand me?"  
>"Yes, sir," I whispered, realizing this must be far more serious than I thought.<p>

"I'm only telling you because your father is Roy Mustang," Mr. Elric says.

"What?" I almost shouted," You know my father? How?"

"Do I know your father? Of course I know your father! He's in all the history books, we worked together…that bastard Colonel" He paused a moment before going real quiet, "And, I'm– …I'm Edward Elric."

Shock? Surprise? Disbelief? I don't know what I felt, but I couldn't speak. My teacher…is the famous Edward Elric? The one who defeated the homunculous, Wrath! Unbelievable! Somehow I couldn't imagine that Edward Elric would become a teacher. A teacher like Mr. Elric, no less, always laid back, and looking more like a scholar, not a fire headed fighter.

Mr. Elric sat down again and pulled the collar of his shirt just over his shoulder. A thick scar about an inch and a half wide wrapped around his broad shoulder. The scar that marked where his automail arm had once been before he got his real arm back. After rolling his sleeve down, he lifted the edge of his pants to his knee, showing his automail leg.

He smiled slightly at my surprise.

"Not a lot of people know I'm Edward Elric. Most think I'm Evan Elric, with no relation to Edward or Alphonse. But now you know my secret."

"Why do you wanna keep that a secret?" I asked," Don't you want people to know who you are?"

"No, not particularly. Most people blame me for this," he said, gesturing to our surroundings.

He's right of course. In our little town there was no electricity and we were lucky to have running water. A lot of Pisu's residents had lived in luxury before Edward killed King Bradley. And for about a year after Bradley was defeated the alchemists and humans fought for the right to rule.

Naturally, it seemed wrong for an alchemist to rule since we wielded so much power to begin with. And since the humans outnumbered us, a human was voted into office. Two months later, all alchemists were sent to remote towns or killed for resisting.

"What happened when you were forced to leave?"

"A lot happened that day," Mr. Elric mused, before launching into his tale" I woke up and it was just like every other day. Winry had been up for about an hour and we went through our usual morning routine. However, around ten in the morning soldiers in new, crisp, green uniforms knocked on our door...

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><p><em>"How may I help you?" Ed asked, eyeing the stone faced soldier, who glared right back. <em>

_"By orders of President Maliki James, all alchemists are to be evacuated to their designated relocation towns, or be executed at any sign of resistance." The soldier spoke clearly, presenting a yellow packet, containing information papers. Ed hesitated a moment, before nodding and grabbing the folder, shutting the door. _

_As he tuned to go back to the kitchen, Ed was shocked to see Winry behind him, staring with a wide-eyed look. She slowly fell to her knees, as Ed rushed over to her, kneeling down to rest her head in his lap. _

_Her body shook, as her tears soaked his pants, "So– so close, to the wedding…" she sobbed, clutching his hand tightly. _

_Ed nodded soberly, he had proposed to her last year, and they had just been finishing the last few plans for their wedding, which was two weeks away._

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><p>Mr. Elric paused. His voice was shaky and his eyes watery. This was a very emotional story for him. It even had me tearing up.<p>

As he continued Mr. Elric struggled to control his emotions," I couldn't bear the thought of leaving my soon to be wife and the life we'd built, but, I couldn't die either…that'd be much worse. So I packed my belongings, ready to leave when the order was given. Not long after I had finished packing, there was a second knock on the door, and I thought for sure it was those soldiers telling me I had to leave. But it wasn't, and instead I opened the door to find your mother and father."

I frowned. My father is blind, and was then too. Granted, he wasn't completely helpless, but he still relied on me to guide him outside of our little house.

Mr. Elric chuckled," You're father shoved his way into my house, cursing like you wouldn't believe, and ran smack into a wall. Even Riza was laughing, given the situation. We sat down in my living room, your father was still fuming, your mother glaring at the carpet, and Winry trying not to cry."

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><p><em>"This is such bullshit!" Roy yelled, enraged.<em>

_ "All alchemists are to leave to their designated relocation towns…" Winry whispered from her spot next to Ed._

_ "Clearly our new government can't be trusted…" Ed muttered quietly, before he suddenly got louder, "Riza! When Roy and I leave, will you please protect Winry for me?"_

_ "Ed…that's not –" Winry had started, but he cut her off, staring into her eyes, in a pleading way._

_ "Please…" he whispered, tears welling in his golden eyes._

_ Riza could see his concern and desperation, "I will."_

_ This caused Roy to burst out, "I can't just leave and never see Riza again! Or…well…you know what I mean!" _

_"We can find a place to meet each other…" Ed suggested, a familiar fire lighting in his eyes._

_ "Where's your new town?" Winry asked. "Are you two even in the same one?"_

_ Ed blinked, clearly not having not thought about that, he pulled out the packet the soldiers had handed him, "I'm in a town called Pisu, in the Eastern section of Amestris, just outside of the desert."_

_ Risa pulled out a similar folder, "Ok, it looks like Roy's in the same town. Good…Let's meet in the closest minor town to the desert then,' Riza thought aloud._

_ Roy nodded, "It's decided then, we'll meet every year for a week in that minor town."_

_ As the time came closer for Roy and Ed to leave, everyone became more and more irritable and angry. Roy and Riza had constant silent glares, while Ed and Winry could be found pacing around the room._

_ The day they were supposed to leave found Roy and Riza at the Elric's house again. Ed punched the wall, "It's just not fair, damn it!"_

_ As Winry managed to calm Ed down enough, the door rattled as someone knocked upon it and everyone froze, looking up at the door. Ed opened it the soldiers everyone anticipated were there._

_ "It's time to leave," The same stone faced soldier from before announced._

_ Ed nodded, gritting his teeth, " Just give us a minute to say good-bye."_

_ They didn't say anything, so Ed closed the door again, growling softly when he heard that they didn't leave._

_ Winry gave Ed one look, before bursting into angry tears, and sprinting into his arms, Riza held Roy in an embrace so strong Ed knew he couldn't breathe._

_Ed gently pushed away Winry's bangs and kissed her forehead gently before moving down to her lips. She held onto his shirt desperately until Ed gently pulled away._

_ Riza handed Roy his suitcase and walking stick, leading him over to where Ed and Winry stood. They exchanged hugs for what felt like would be the last time._

_ "Promise me you'll keep Roy safe, and I'll protect Winry," Riza whispered into Ed's ear as she hugged him tight._

_ "I promise," Ed nodded, before grabbing his suitcase and hugging Winry one last time. _

_Before leaving, Ed handed her his old State Alchemist Pocket Watch, making sure the alchemy seal was broken so she could open it._

_ Tears rolled down her cheeks as she opened and closed the pocket watch and Roy opened the door, showing the soldiers who still stood on the porch. _

_As Ed made sure that Roy, who had their house memorized, made it down the stairs ok, Ed gazed back one more time, at his house, and Winry and Riza. _

_ "Why I am always so weak when people need me most…' Roy whispered next to him as a lone tear streaked down his cheek, but Ed pretended that he didn't hear him_

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><p><strong>Any and all criticism will be welcome! {and any Flames will go to feed our fireplace!}<strong>

**{And please, REWIEW~}**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok! Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this! And thanks to everyone who decided to continue reading! ^-^ a special thanks to everyone who faved and followed!**

**Alright! So I'll be responding to any reviews! **

**Wolfishmoon: ****Wow! Thanks for your amazing review! { Silv here! So I have one thing that I think is a bit confusing with your idea. (Don't get me wrong, I was absolutely bouncing off the walls, when I read your review, it's one of my first ****_actually well thought out_**** reviews.) But again, if we are basing it off of the Brotherhood, when Ed talks to Truth, after the final battle, and he gives up his Alchemy, Truth asks him "Will you degrade yourself to an ordinary person, unable to use alchemy?" (FMA manga pg 46 ch 108)'. This makes me believe that not everyone has a gate, and that only select people have gates, and are able to survive without one. Or, I could just be overthinking this, and you're right….but I think we're basing this off of that thought}**

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><p>I walked home in a daze along the dirt road, head down, and hoped people wouldn't run into me. Most shops have closed down for the day, their owner's home with their families. The few stragglers who do mingle in the roads are mostly drunks and those who are homeless. Mr. Elric's story replays in my mind. What made Maliki think alchemists were bad enough to be pushed to the very edges of society? What made us such a threat?<p>

Mr. Elric said my father had asked why he's so weak when people needed him. I wish I could answer that, but the truth is, he's not weak; in fact, he's far from it. Even though he's blind, he doesn't act like it. He rarely uses his walking stick, he's stronger than most people I know, and he saved everyone from becoming a Philosophers Stone. He's is also the most stubborn person I know.

I pulled myself out of my thoughts with a soft sigh and looked up, and to my surprise someone reading a book slams into me. He falls forward, right on top of me as I fall backwards. I tried to catch myself, but my hands slid across the rough dirt as we fall toward the ground together. My breath leaves in a sudden _whoosh_ of air, and I'm left gasping

After a moment of lying there in a daze, he scrambled off of me, muttering," Oh no…I'm sorry…" as he tries to find his book.

I pulled myself up into a sitting position and took a good look at my assaulter for the first time. My jaw drops. He looked exactly like Mr. Elric, only without the scraggy beard. Same face, eyes, body build, and even his hair is pulled back in the same way.

"What?" he asked, his golden eyes catching the setting sun, a confused expression gracing his handsome features, "Is there something on my face?"

I was so shocked and he looked so funny trying to see his own face that I couldn't help but laugh.

After a moment of surprise, he also started to chuckle slightly and stood up, reaching down to give me a hand. I hesitated slightly, not really wanting him to know my hands were bloody, but took his hand anyway.

"I'm Terrin Elric, but you can call me Rin." He said as he pulled me to my feet. "I'm Pace Mustang, nice to meet you." I replied, before tilting my head slightly. "You're Edward Elric's son, right?"

His eyes squint for a moment, before he smirked at me," Why yes, yes I am."

I winced as his grip tightened as he shook my hand," So if you know I'm _Edward_'s son my father must have told you his real identity, correct?"

"Yes," I said, trying to hide my pain as well as I could, holding back a wince at his firm, yet gentle grip.

When he took his hand away I could see the blood, my blood, on his hand. Rin noticed my gaze and looked at his hand, his eyes widening at the sight, before taking mine back.

"Man! I'm so sorry! This is all my fault, I wasn't looking where I was going." He gasped, as he gently probed at the scrapes.

I winced at the gentle pressure, causing him to glance up at my face in an apology, "It's not all your fault thought, I wasn't looking where I was going either."

He hesitates a moment before looking around, confirming there was no one walking down the street, before gently leading me into a nearby alley. He kneels on the ground and motions for me to follow.

"Put your hands on the ground," Rin told me.

Curious as to what he was going to do, I put my hands on the ground. His eyes focus, he takes a deep breath, and claps his hands, before pushing them into the ground next to my own. A blinding light came from our hands and I could feel the pain in my hands easing. He was healing my hands!

After the light fades I lifted my hands off the dirt and look at them intently. There was no sign I had ever cut my hands. "That's Eastern Alchemy, from Xing, right?"

"Yes. My father taught me how to do it," Rin smirked at me.

"That…is amazing." I said, allowing a bit of aw to slip onto my face.

"I suppose you could say that," he said, before asking, "So your father is Roy Mustang, right?"

"Yeah

"And you inherited his flame alchemy, right?"

"Yeah," I sighed.

"Why does it sound like you're sad or annoyed about that?" He tilted his head, his golden bangs falling across his face…cutely.

My Master's words replay in my mind_, 'Fire is destructions, but it's also life. Without the alchemist the earth will not bend itself! But fire…fire is alive, it breathes and spreads. You must be able to control yourself, to control the flamed.'_

I sighed again," Fire is dangerous."

"Yes, but it's also life, Pace. If you're freezing and wet, you could make a fire to warm yourself again!" he argued, looking both determined and surprised.

"I guess…" I said, still not convinced myself.

After a slightly awkward moment, Rin rubs the back of his neck, "Well, should I walk you home? I still feel really bad about knocking you down

"I actually don't live too far from here, but if you really want to walk me home, you can."

Rin nodded, grinning crookedly, "I think I'll walk you home."

With that said, we turned to continue to walking, slipping out of the alley.

As we walked down the rough dirt street, a thick, awkward silence filled the air, as both of us thought about the other.

"Well…This is home," I told him, gesturing to the small building.

"Alrigh then," Rins says awkwardly as we stood outside the rickety gate.

"Thanks for walking me home," I smiled at him. "I guess we'll be seeing each other around."

After a moment of silence, where I looked over to find Rin staring into space, only to jump slightly and glance at me, "R-right, see each other around…Yeah…Bye…"

I watched as he turned to continue walking down the road, waving back at me, before opening the gate and heading inside.

The house is small, but it's perfect for me and my dad. Two bedrooms, one bathroom, a tiny kitchen, and an even smaller living room. It's good for my dad. Because he's blind it makes it hard to maneuver in large places without help, but in this small house there's not much to memorize. He can move around easily and doesn't have to go up and down stairs.

I walk in and set down my bag, moving around the worn-out couch to go to my bedroom.

"What took you so long to come home?" My dad's voice came out of nowhere as he showed up behind me.

"I was talking to Mr. Elric," I gasped, turning around to look at him. Sometimes my dad was so quiet I can't hear him when he's behind me.

"About what?" He asked, coming a little closer to me.

"You should know the answer to that…" I whispered," Why didn't you tell me, dad?"

He seemed to shrink a little," I didn't think you needed to know."

"Dad!" I groaned, "I've learned about you in the history books! But…I want to know more that. Like, what made you blind? What happened? I want to know the details."

"Damn it, Fullmetal!" My father growled, turning his head slightly to the side.

"Dad, don't blame this on Ed, it's your fault too." I glared at him, although I knew it was wasted.

"Pace, stop." He sighed," Why do you need to know?"

I rolled my eyes and shouted," Because I want to know how the world became so messed up!"

"Telling you my woes won't help with that, Pace," Dad was gritting his teeth, his eyebrows crumpling.

"You don't know that!" I practically yelled at him.

My father stumbled back, as if I had physically struck out at him. I've never yelled at him before. His gray-streaked black hair falls into his unseeing eyes, and he looks tired and depressed, with rather large bags circling his dark eyes. He walked slowly to the living room and sits on the woven chair we had, and placed his head in his hands.

I felt bad for yelling at him, but I was sick of him shielding me.

"Pace…" my dad sighed," come here…"

I walk over to where he sits, but I couldn't look at him. I kneelt down in front of him, as he takes his hands away from his face and holds them out, waiting for me to give him mine. We do this when we have a serious conversation so that we know we're listening to each other. I gently grasp his hands in mine, lightly tracing my fingers over his callouses, and the large white scars that went through both his palms. His hands were slightly rough, but still soft, and so much bigger than mine. They held so much more knowledge, and experience.

"Do you really wanna know my reason for not telling you my past?" he spoke softly, his hands gently grasping my own.

I noded, before realizing he couldn't see me, and whispered, "Yes."

"I didn't want you to know the man I used to be." His eyes flashed slightly, hints of untold horrors glinting in the silvery irises.

"Daddy, who you are now means more to me, than who you used to be," I could feel tears pooling behind my eyes, as I squeezed his hands tightly.

My father got down onto his knees in front of me, smiled, and wraped me in a hug.

"I love you, baby girl," he whispered, as I nuzzled my head into his neck and chest.

"I love you too, daddy."

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><p><strong>Yay! Chapter two is done! So things should be picking up from here, hopfully. <strong>

**Also, I'm taking a page out of Silv-chan's book, and making a quote challenge! At the end of every chapter, I'll be putting a quote from an Anime or book {if it's something else we'll tell you}. and who ever can guess right, gets a shout out at the beginning of the chapter! And whoever has the most shout outs by the end of the story gets a special prize! {And please, don't cheat and use google or anything like that}**

**Here we go! **

**"If you hesitate it can be fatal, just like chess"**

**Please review! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Alight! Chapter 3! Sorry it's taken us so long for us to get this up…_someone *looks pointedly at Silv* _has been taking forever to get her part of the editing done {Hey! I can't help that I've been busy! And sick!} too bad! XD **

**Any way~ Thanks for anyone who's been taking the time out of their day to read this!**

**I don't own FMA!**

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><p>The next morning my dad sent me off to school with a smile.<p>

The day passed uneventfully, for the most part. After what Mr. Elric told me yesterday, everything else seemed to pale in comparison.

Soon, I was in history, and this class, like all the others, passed uneventfully. As I was walking out of the classroom, called me over.

"Yes, sir?" I asked, thinking he'd want to talk about what he'd said yesterday.

"How would you like to meet my son and brother today?" He asked, shuffling a stack of our papers.

"Sir, I met your son yesterday…and what about my father?" I responded, not sure if he'd contacted my father about not coming home after school.

"So he told me….he's quiet fond of you," He muttered, squinting at me like I was a mystery," and don't worry about you dad, he already knows."

"I guess, if my dad already knows it'd be okay…" I said slowly.

Mr. Elric smiled," Great! Then it's decided, you'll stay over for dinner."

Mr. Elric was so excited I had agreed to go with him that he grabbed my wrist and dragged me out of the school.

It's strange.

Yesterday he had been so serious, but today he's like a giddy child. When we'd left the school building Mr. Elric let go of my wrists and kept the crazy fast pace. As I jogged slightly to keep up, I wondered what Alphonse would be like, and what kind of person he'd become since he'd gotten his body back.

Within five minutes we had reached Mr. Elric's house. He had told me it was a two story building with a basement, four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and I can't guess how many candles to light the whole house after dark. It was gigantic compared to the humble home my dad and I shared.

However, when I walked into the door I could see their struggle. Even though their house was nice on the outside, the internal structure suffered. The stairs were shaky and felt unstable, the walls were peeling, and the whole thing creaked and moaned.

Mr. Elric led the way up a set of stairs to where the kitchen, the dining room, and the living room were. At the top I could see Alphonse and Terrin sitting on a couch arguing about equivalent exchange. Terrin saw me first and smiled, yet Alphones almost seemed angry when he saw me.

"Who is this, brother?" Alphonse asked.

"This is Pace, Mustang's girl." Mr. Elric smirked.

"Pace Mustang, huh?" Alphonse said as he turned to me," So you're the Pace my young Terrin was talking about. Are you really Colonel Mustang's child?"

I stumbled over my words both from embarrassment and fear," Ye-yes, I a-am Mustang's dau-daughter."

"What's your father's condition?" He asked sternly.

I could hear Terrin snicker at his uncle as I responded, feeling like I was being interrogated, "Blind?"

"What did you learn about my dear Terrin yesterday?"

I blushed and panicked,"Ummm…"

"Uncle, stop." Terrin finally cut in, blushing as well.

Alphonse broke into a huge and welcoming smile," I'm just teasing you guys."

I let out a huge breath, but as Terrin got closer to me and leaned in to whisper in my my ear, I held it again.

"Don't worry, he's just kidding, he's actually really nice. You'll see," He said as he walked back to the couch, "Come and sit over here."

I nodded and followed him over to a small, slightly battered couch, slowly sitting down next to Terrin, blushing as his shoulder brushed mine.

Alphonse and Edward sat on a couch in front of Terrin and me. I shifted, slightly uncomfortable since I was sitting with my teacher, his son, and his brother who acted like he hated me.

As time wore on I became more relaxed, more comfortable with Mr. Elric's family, realizing that Alphonse didn't hate me and that he was actually, like Terrin had said, really nice. Al laughed often, but Mr. Elric mostly just chuckled, and Terrin would laugh like Al, only with his father's voice.

-LINE-

Dinner was a slightly runny beef stew, with a fresh loaf of bread, something that I've only had a few times. It was absolutely delicious, and made a mental note to ask if I could bring some home for my dad.

As we ate we talked casually about nothing in particular, it was really nice. Mr. Elric's family was wonderful, and I felt as though I had become part of them, after only a few hours of knowing them.

"So, is there anything you'd like to know, Pace?" Mr. Elric smiled as he twirled his spoon between his fingers.

I looked around at Alphonse and Terrin, they nodded and smiled in encouragement.

I looked down at my bowl, now empty, and crossed my arms, "I– I know that this isn't your story to tell, but…c-could you tell me how my father became blind?"

The table was silent, as Mr. Elric grit his teeth, Alphonse looked down, and Terrin got a sad expression. They all knew why my dad can't see, and I guessed that they had assumed that I had known as well.

"Please…he won't tell me himself." I whispered, looking down at my arms, before looking back up at Mr. Elric.

"He was forced to open the gate…" Mr. Elric whispered, his teeth still clenched.

"Forced to open the gate…as in the gate of Truth?" I ask, mortified.

They all nod and I could feel my shoulders slump, "Forced how?"

Mr. Elric hesitated slightly, looking at his brother for a moment. They nod in some sort of agreement, and he looked down then at me, "Your father refused to tell us as well, it was your mother who finally told us, a few days later.

"You see, Brother and I weren't there when he was forced," Alphones explained, his sad eyes trained on the table cloth. "We had been separated from our group and stuck in this room far below Central, by Pride." I nodded, having read about the homunculus in my dad's old notes.

"From what she remembered, your mother was suffering from a severe cut to the throat, and a Doctor who had played a large part in creating the Philosophers Stones during the Ishiblan War was pressuring Roy to perform human transmutation, in order to save her." Mr. Elric continued from Alphones. "You see, in order for the homunculus to succeed, they needed a fifth sacrifice, and Roy was the best option. Luckily, Riza was able to silently tell him not do it, and buy enough for a group of backup to attack."

Again, Alphones picked up the story, "Luckily, one of our allies, May, was with the backups, and was able to stop the bleeding, saving Riza, but that's when everything got worse."

Ed nodded, "After May was able to save you mother, Wrath, or King Bradly as you know him, arrived, and attacked."

"Before Roy could do anything, Wrath had attacked, both the scientist and Roy," Ed continued after a moment. "He was able to pin him down, by stabbing him through both his hands."

I gasped slightly, a realization passing through my mind, as my dad's scarred hands flashed behind my eyes.

Alphones nodded, "That's how he got the scars on his hands."

"Anyway," Ed started again. "At that time, Salim, or Pride, had arrived, and used his shadows to tie Roy and the scientist into the center of the transmutation circle."

"That's when he was forced to open the gate," Alphones continued, looking down. "And your father payed for seeing the truth with his eyesight."

After a moment of silence, Ed sighed, "After that was when he was taken into the room with us, and the rest is history."

Silence engulfed the table. The kind of silence that rings in your ears, and that holds sorrows. Everyone's eyes are down, staring at their laps. No one moves, no one says anything, we just sat there.

"Why…why couldn't he tell me this himself?" I whispered into my lap.

Terrin grabbed my hand gently," It's probably just hard for him to talk about, Pace. Don't worry about it too much."

Ed and Al nodded in response and after exchanging a glance, quickly said," Let's have desert then! We've been saving this for a while."

Terrin smiled broadly, trying to improve the mood." Oh boy. You're gonna love this, Pace!"

Mr. Elric got up and went to the kitchen and came back with what looked like a brown pie. Of course, I had never had pie or cake or anything, so I wasn't exactly sure what it was.

Terrin's grin seemed to grow with the anticipation, as Alphonse cut into the circular pie, his eyes hungry.

The smell was sweet and I couldn't believe something that was such a color would be so sweet. Ed placed slices of the pie onto plates and passed them out to everyone.

"What is it?" I asked warily, inspecting the plate, feeling slightly stupid for not recognizing it.

"It's chocolate!" Terrin exclaimed, grinning at me. "And don't worry, most people don't know what it, it's so rare."

I nodded, feeling relived that he wasn't blaming me of my ignorance.

As soon as he got his plate, Terrin grabbed his fork and dug in without waiting as Alphonse quickly did the same. I picked up my fork and looked at the sweet scented brown triangle on my plate.

"Don't be afraid of it, it's good! Eat it!" Terrin smirked, already half way done with his slice.

Mr. Elric nodded and promptly placed a forkful into his mouth, a look of pure pleasure falling upon his face as his eyes closed.

I cut into my slice, looked at it for a minute, and placed it warily in my mouth. Instantly a wonderful sweet sensation flooded my taste buds. It was like nothing I'd ever tasted, sweet yet slightly bitter. I caught a glimpse of Terrin as I took a second eager bite, he was smiling.

"How were you able to get this?" I asked, as I continued to dig through the sweet treat.

"We may have bribed the guards…" Ed coughed, grinning as he serving himself another slice.

This caused the rest of us to laugh, the mood having greatly improved.

It wasn't long before I finished my slice and was grinning happily.

"You've never had chocolate before, have you?" Terrin asked, still smiling.

"No, never. It was so good!" I replied.

He beamed at me as he reached out to touch my face, but he stopped about an inch away and retracted his hand again, looking down, his cheeks bright red, "You…you have some chocolate on your face."

My face warmed and I wiped my mouth with a napkin, "Thank you."

Ed and Al stood up, taking our plates and heading to the kitchen. I stared down at the table and fiddled with the edge of my shirt. After a couple minutes it was clear that Al and Ed weren't coming back, as Terrin got antsier with each moment that passed in silence.

"Do you wanna go for a walk?" He finally asked, standing.

"Yes please." I responded, glad for the break in silence.

It was an almost eerie evening. The sun was having its last moments before finally disappearing, there was a slight breeze that rustled the loose objects around the town. Drapes flutter in the wind and shutters rattle lightly. But it was warm and it would have been almost comforting if the wind would stop.

We walked side by side and listened to the sounds of late evening. However, after a while I could tell Terrin had something to say. He was fidgety and agitated. This something was important to him.

"If you have something to say, just spit it out." I told him, not unkindly.

He looked surprised for a moment, then nodded," I was thinking…." He muttered, biting his lip.

"Thinking what?" I asked him, tilting my head to look up at him.

"What if…"He whispered," What if we went to find our mothers and my sister?"

I thought about this a moment. _If we go find our parents I'd be able to find out why the alchemists were separated. And I'd be able to see my mother for the first time…This could actually get me somewhere! Now I just need to convince my father to let me go._

"I'm in," I said, my voice low.

Terrin stopped walking, "Wait…really? You want to go too?"

"Yeah. I mean…I don't even know what my mother looks like. Since my dad can't see and all we don't really have any pictures."

"We'll have to tell out parents what we're doing and where we're going…" Terrin mused, "Tomorrow's Saturday, right? Think your dad would come over then and we could bring it up?"

"Sure, we'll be there," I smiled, a warm feeling blossoming in my chest. Even though we've only known each other for a few days, it felt we we've been friends for a life time.

Terrin grinned and hugged me tightly, "Great!"

I was so surprised I couldn't stop myself from hugging him back. He was so warm against the chill of night and he smelled of the chocolate pie we had just eaten. The sun had long since disappeared from the sky line and the air had cooled considerably.

When our embrace ended, he blushed, looking down, clearly embarrassed," So..I'll uh…I'll see you tomorrow then?" He asked as he rubbed his neck.

"See you tomorrow." I said, smiling as I slipped past the gate and down the road to my house.

As I walked the rest of the way home I thought about what Edward and Alphonse said about my father, and what Terrin suggested we do. _Should I have told him what I plan on doing? _I thought. _No, I'll tell him when we get to Central. _

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><p><strong>Yay! Done with chapter 3!<strong>

**The story should be picking up after the chapter! (If not after the next) **

**Alright! Quote of the chapter time!**

**"Sanity? Sorry, but I've never had such a bothersome thing from the start"**

**Now, go go go! Review! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello my lovely readers! **

**Sorry that this has taken a while, life sucks {For both of us}**

**Anyway, thanks to everyone who's taken time out of their day to click this story!**

**I DON'T OWN FMA**

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><p>That night was restless for me. I tossed and turned trying to think of how to convince my dad to let me go to Central with Terrin. He'd be against it, I knew that. I've never gone anywhere outside our little town and for me to go as far as Central.<p>

Shadows shift around my room as clouds cross over the moon. _There's no way my father will let me go._

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><p>Morning came and I had only managed to get about an hour of sleep. As I got up to make breakfast and wash up I found that I was jittery and jumpy.<p>

As the day wore on my father didn't ask me any questions about why I was so high strung, even though I knew he had noticed. He just smiled and went about his Saturday as he usually would. The way he sauntered around worried me even more. _He knows something's up…he'll never let me go…_

Eleven o'clock rolled around and I decided it was late enough to head to Terrin's house. I just had to convince my father to go with me.

"Hey, dad," I said, a slight quiver in my voice.

"Yes dear?" My father asked calmly in return, he was sitting on the couch, a small book with brail writing sitting in his lap.

"Umm…" I stammered," Would you mind going with me to…to—let's just say to town?"

"Of course, Hun." He smiled, marking his place and setting the book down on the small table side where he sat, standing and stretching slightly.

On our walk to Terrin's I held my father's hand to guide him through the streets. Occasionally, he would stumble on cracks or a stray rock in the road, but quickly caught himself. His reactions were amazingly fast, even faster than some people who can see, and it always surprises me.

When we reached Mr. Elric's house my anxiety of telling my father about leaving Pisu peaked. My heart pounded, my hands shook, and my thoughts went buy like the wind. I could barely breathe as I knocked on the door.

"Mustang," Mr. Elric grunted when he opened the door, and I led my dad through the opening, blushing slightly when Terrin stepped into the living room, a tray of drinks balanced in his arms.

"Ed," My dad nodded in the direction of Mr. Elric, as I pulled him gently to the small couch that I had sat on with Terrin the night before. "And Al."

He seemed hardly surprised that I had taken him to the Elric's house.

"Colonel!" Al suddenly appear behind us, from where he was walking down the stairs, almost silent.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Al, I don't have that title anymore," My dad turned his sightless eyes onto him, only a few inches off of meeting Al's eyes.

"Ah, sorry, Roy," Al laughed awkwardly, sitting next to his brother and accepting a cup from Terrin.

My dad nodded, as Terrin came to a stop in front of me, looking hesitant, his eyes flicking between the tray he was holding and my dad, not sure what to do.

I grinned slightly, squeezing my dad's hand slightly before nodding to Terrin, signaling him to hand my father a glass. As he held out the glass, a small pieces of ice clinking slightly, allowing my dad to easily reach out and gasp the glass, much to Terrin's obvious surprise.

I laughed at Terrin's slight gasp. He hesitated once more as he handed me a glass of water. I smiled and Terrin nodded, blushing, and set down the tray, grabbing the last glass for himself and stood at the edge of the coffee table.

"So how have you been Roy?" Al asked, sounding cheerful as ever even though the atmosphere was tense.

"Well enough, though I have no idea how I'd live without Pace." My father responded.

"She's a good girl. Her grades are always good in class." Mr. Elric noted.

Terrin opened his mouth as to say something but quickly closed it again and took a sip of water. He wore dark jeans and a black tank top that showed off his arms and shoulders. Anyone would tell you he was fit just by looking at him, but this was an all-new Terrin. I had never seen him in just jeans and a tank top before…he looked good.

"Oh, and Dad," I said, motioning for Terrin to stand and come over, "This is Terrin, Terrin, my dad."

Standing, my dad held out a hand, which Terrin grasped firmly, "It's nice to meet you, sir."

"Likewise," My dad nodded, shaking Terrin's hand, before letting go and sitting back down to next to me, his hand falling to grasp my knee, to make sure he was next to me.

"Does Terrin go to school with Pace?" My father asked, breaking my thoughts.

"Yes and no." Mr. Elric responded," He goes to school, but he's not in my class. They don't let parents teach their own kids in fear that they'd play favorites and potentially curve the grades."

My dad nodded," Understandable."

There was a pause and Terrin quickly jumped in," Pace and I have something to say."

"Oh?" My father said, surprise flashing across his face.

"Go ahead Rin." Mr. Elric said and nodded at us.

I stood up with Terrin and I could feel my face warm. We hesitated before blurting out, at the same time, "We'd like to go to Central!"

A thick silence filled the air after our claim, as I nervously looked between the adults. Both Ed and Al looked shocked, eyes wide, mouths open with pure surprise. Yet, my dad seemed unmoved by this sudden event.

"Why, what's your purpose?" Mr. Elric whispered, shaking out of his shock and crossing his arms.

Terrin looked down at his feet as he shifted from side to side," I just want to see my mother and my sister…"

"And I want to see my mother too," I whispered, looking at my father who was still seemingly unmoved.

Ed narrowed his eyes, "No."

Terrin flinched, and stumbled backwards as though he had been physically hit," Wh-What?"

"You heard me, I said no." Mr. Elric said again, a stubborn and slightly angry tone in his voice," Son, Central is a dangerous place. If…if anything happened to you...I would never forgive myself."

"But, Dad!" Terrin argued.

"Terrin Urey Elric! I said no and that's final!" Mr. Elric shouted as he stood, his golden eyes alight with fire.

"Fine…" Terrin muttered as he bent his head in defeat.

"I don't know…" My father broke in, his arms crossed as he leaned back in his seat, "I think we should let them go."

"Roy! You can't possibly be okay with them leaving!" Alphonse protested.

"Yes, it's dangerous, but just think about what you guys did when you were their age," My father mentioned," Actually, weren't you younger than that when you became a State Alchemist, Edward?"

Mr. Elric nodded, and whispered," Yes, but this isn't about me! They could get caught! What if Maliki hurt them? They'd have the power to do so…"

"Terrin, please take Pace downstairs. I need to speak to your father and uncle." My dad didn't even bother turning his head, his dead gaze pinned on Mr. Elric.

I was taken aback by my father's anger. I've seen him angry, but he radiated furry. His teeth were gritted, his fists clenched as though he were ready to fight.

After a moment, Terrin grabbed me by the hand and pulled me down the stairs to their basement.

"Don't worry," He whispered, closing the door with a soft thud. "we'll still be able to hear them from down here."

"Edward Elric, you know damn well that you were doing much dangerous things when you were seven than just sneaking into Central to see your mother!" I heard my father shout," There is no reason they can't go to find theirs!"

"And what if they get hurt?" Ed shouted back.

"Well that's just a risk that they'll have to take." My father said. "do you really think that they haven't thought of that yet?"

"And if they get captured?" Alphonse whispered, just barely audible to us.

"For God's sake Al! You and Ed have trained Terrin, correct?" My dad paused, waiting for a response, "Then I'm pretty sure he's a wonderful alchemist and I know for sure that my Pace is a fantastic alchemist! They'll be fine!"

"What if they're not? What if they don't come back? What if they die out there?" Both Alphonse and Ed shouted at the same time.

"They won't. They're strong, and if they're anything like us, they'll be stubborn too. They won't let themselves get caught or hurt. They will survive." My father said stubbornly.

At this point, they quieted and we could no longer hear what they were saying.

Terrin fiddled with his thumbs and sat down on the floor, after a moment, I also sat across from him quietly.

"He's never used my full name before…" He whispered, pulling his legs to his chest, and resting his chin on his knees.

He looked genuinely hurt. I felt bad for him.

"I'm sure we just took him by surprise, that's all." I tried to console him, not really knowing what it was like to have my dad mad at me.

"Sure, I guess," He said, looking down at the carpet in front of his feet.

"Terrin, everything will be okay." I told him firmly, realizing that we had both seen a new side of our fathers today.

Terrin sigh and wrapped his arms tighter around his legs for a moment, before relaxing his posture and shifting to sit cross legged. He fixed me with a firm stare, his eyes a molten gold. "Hey Pace, would you mind calling me Rin? I'm not a big fan of Terrin…people only use that when I'm in trouble."

"Yeah, sure," I smiled, trying to make him smile.

"Say it?" He whispered, keeping his gaze on my eyes.

"Te-Rin. Sorry." I whispered, laughing slightly, "It'll take some getting used to."

"Just Rin, okay?"

"Okay, Rin." I said, blushing.

He smiled, but it was a weak smile I could tell his father was still nagging his mind. I wish I could hear what they were saying. I hope my dad convinces Ed and Al to let us go.

Rin pats the floor next to him, a gesture that says he wants me closer to him. I move over slowly, very self-conscious. He laid down and stared up at the ceiling.

"Do you think they'll let us go?" He whispered.

I glanced back at him for a moment, before I lay down with him, "I don't know."

"Seems like your dad was pretty into letting us go…think he could convince my father and uncle to let us go?" He pulled his arms back to pillow his head.

"I think it's possible…" I said, smiling as I thought of my father.

We laid there silently as we listened to our fathers whisper angrily back and forth.

As time stretched, on I thought back to how mad my father had been earlier. It had been a least a year that I've last seen my dad that mad.

* * *

><p><em> "Hey, Gurl, commere, an' lemme see some o' da' bodey"<em>

_I grit my teeth, backing up slightly as the four intoxicated men swayed closer, their green uniforms crumpled, "No, I don't think I'll do that."_

_I had been walking home from school, and was not too far from the house, when a couple of the guards had backed me into one of the alley ways._

_"Awww ya' ear tha?" the largest guard slurred, drunkenly laughing. "Bitch don' wan' ta guve us a show!"_

_The other guards also laughed, still stumbling forward, causing me to back up again, cursing softly when my back met the brick wall._

_Suddenly the guard on the left lunged forward to land his hand on my shoulder, pushing me up aginst the wall, "Aww, da littl' sluts bein shy! Loos like we' gunna hav' ta start da show by our' selvs."_

_"Pace!" I heard my father call from the end of the alley. "Where are you?!"_

_This finally shook me out of my scared and shocked thoughts, and I lashed out, punching the man in the face as hard as I could. He stumbled back, with a clump of my shirt still clenched in his hand. _

_"Get away from me!" I screamed, quickly punching the guard to the right, moving him away from my escape._

_With a hand on my falling shirt, I darted out of the alley, with the remaining four guards stumbling after me, drunken shouts falling out of their mouths._

_As I broke into the street, I gasped, seeing my father quickly moving toward me, his walking stick held out in front of him, "Pace!"_

_"Daddy!" I yelled, running to him and hugging him tightly, feeling his strong arms wrap around me._

_"Wai!" the guard I had punched yelled angrily, stumbling into the street, his buddies following closely. "we wan' our show! Ya littl' slut!"_

_I tensed, feeling my dad's arms tighten considerably, as he heard this, along with his hand brushing the torn material of my ruined shirt._

_ "Did they?" he whispered quietly, one of his arms moving away from my back._

_I shook my head against his chest, before looking up at his face, as he shifted to put his hands together in a praying position._

_His face was contorted in rage, his blank eyes a molten silver, "where are they? Pace?" I blinked and told him, as he turned me around and started walking back to the house, a snap cutting through the air, followed closely by the familiar found of fire crackling though the air._

* * *

><p>" – ace?" I shook out of my memories at the sound of T–Rin's voice.<p>

"Huh?" I glanced over at him, seeing him looking at me expectantly. I grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

"I noticed," Rin grinned slightly, before going back to staring at the ceiling. A moment of silence passed again.

"Do you think we could change how people see alchemists?" Rin asked me, almost so quietly I couldn't hear him.

"I hope so," I whispered back," Honestly, that was another reason I wanted to go to Central with you."

"It was my original plan, but I covered it up with our moms." He told me.

"Really?"

"Yeah…but anyways," He muttered," You said you've never seen your mother, right?"

"Yep," I said.

"I think we might have a picture if you want to see it…"

I thought about this a moment. If I saw the picture, would it defeat the purpose of going? Or should I just go in not knowing?

"No thanks," I said, after a moment of serious debate, "I'd rather keep it a surprise. You can tell me when I meet her."

Rin raised his eyebrows, "If you insist."

Not even five minutes after our conversation ended Ed and Al were calling us upstairs. I could feel my chest tighten and I was afraid I might trip going up their stairs. When we reached their little living room my father gave me a nod, a sign that he'd convinced Ed and Al to let us go. I smiled, but could feel just how angry Ed and Al were that my dad had convinced them to let us go.

"We've decided to let you go to Central…" Ed answered out unspoken question with gritted teeth. He still wasn't happy about letting us go. Rin gasped from his place next to me," Really?"

"Yes," Al responded, his arms crossed angrily.

"But before you go, we need to warn you…" My dad followed.

There was a pause before he continued, "Just because you're children, Maliki won't hesitate to kill you. You must stay in the shadows, keep your heads low."

"Rin, you'll have to hide your hair. Pace looks normal enough, but don't make them suspect you," Al added.

"If they think you're dangerous for any reason at all, they will capture you, or kill you on the spot." My dad's face grave.

There was silence after my father's words. We knew he wasn't kidding, but it still seemed terrible that they wouldn't hesitate even if we aren't legal adults yet. I couldn't believe it. But! I didn't have time to think about that now, what's down is done…we're going to Central.

"Alright," Mr. Elric sat down heavily, still looking upset. "There is a supply train that comes in every other week, the only time that they drop part of the electric fence."

"And the only time someone can get out," my dad added, his arms crossed.

"So this will be our way out," Rin said, glancing at me, excitement glittering in his eyes.

Ed nodded, "The next train will be next week, so we will go on with this next week as we normally would, to keep away suspicion."

"This next week will also be when we get things together for you two to leave," Al finished.

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><p>The next week sped by, as we tried our best to live everyday life, but as Saturday came closer and closer, the stress was starting to show for all of us.<p>

In class Mr. Elric was more irritable, handing out detentions left and right, and grading extremely hard. My dad was quiet, and was spending more time in his room, when we were not sitting together on the couch. When I had managed to see Rin, he had a constant tenseness in his shoulders, something I could understand.

Soon, Saturday rolled along, and we were standing in Rin's house.

Ed looked disappointed as Rin and I were ready to leave.

It was tense.

Ed still strongly believed we shouldn't go, but my father still had quite an effect on him. Alphonse grumble quietly to himself before masking his discontent with a sad smile.

My dad gabbed my hand and took me to the side. He pulled something out of his jacket pocket slowly. I was shocked when I saw a pair of gloves, his ignition gloves, when he handed them to me.

"Daddy…" I whispered.

"Wear them all the time when you leave the town…you never know what could go wrong." He whispered in return, hugging me strongly.

I looked over at Rin and his father. Ed was handing him a sort of journal looking thing. I didn't really get what was so important about this book but Rin treated it like it was a diamond. My dad was still hugging me, but Rin was motioning to start moving.

We had to jump on the supply train before it left at noon.

"I'll miss you, Daddy," I whispered to him, burying my head in his chest.

"I'll miss you too, baby girl," he pulled me tighter to his chest. "Say hello to you mother for me."

I smiled and told him, "Of course," before walking over to where Rin stood.

"You ready?" He asked, bumping me with his shoulder playfully.

I nodded, a knot in my stomach growing.

Rin seemed so confident about everything, but I still felt extremely nervous. And I suppose he could tell because he smiled sweetly at me, "Don't worry, everything will be okay."

With that we walked out the door, off on our journey, waving at our reluctant parents with many "I love you's and "take care"'s.

I felt bad about leaving my dad so I had asked Ed to keep an eye on him, make sure he was okay. He had nodded and we left. I'm gonna miss my small town…

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><p><strong>YAY! The story will officially pick up as of now! <strong>

**{the chapters are getting longer and longer…}**

**Is that a good thing?**

**{yeah! That's a good, no great thing!}**

**Yay! And now… quote time!**

**"_Hearts, you say? You Humans are always so quick to speak of such things. As though you carry your hearts in the very palms of your hands. But this eye of mine perceives all. There is nothing that it overlooks. If this eye cannot see a thing, then it does not exist. That is the assumption under which I have always fought. What is this "heart"? If I tear open that chest of yours, will I see it there? If I smash open that skull of yours, will I see it there?"_**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello readers! I am terribly sorry for the long wait, school sucks.**

**{I admit to being a terrible slacker and it was mainly me who is to blame for this taking so long!}**

**BUT! Now that we are out of school for the summer, and have some free time {only a little, cuz Marching band starts soon!} we'll hopefully be pumping out chapters pretty fast! **

**But only if a certain editor does her job { guilty as charged }**

**Thanks to Guest for reviewing and to everyone who has taken time out of their day to read our little story!**

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><p>It took us a matter of minutes to get to the train tracks and when we had gotten there, we were early. All we really had to do now was sit and wait for the train to come by and we'd jump onto one of the open cars. However, there seemed to be only one teensy tiny itty-bitty problem with that, I had no idea how we were going to do that.<p>

"Uh…Hey Te-Rin," I whispered, still stuttering on his name.

"Yes?" He responded as he looked up and down the tracks.

"How are we going to jump onto the train?" I asked, feeling a little silly for not knowing.

He smiled a little," We're gonna start running when we see an open car and when that car gets close enough we'll jump on using the handle that should be on the side."

I nodded," Yea…okay…sounds easy enough." I muttered, uncomfortable with the idea of jumping on a moving train.

We stood there in silence for a few minutes, waiting for the train. It seemed like it took hours for the locomotive to finally start charging down the tracks.

Automatically Rin was in the running position, waiting for an empty car to show itself. I followed his lead and when he took off sprinting, I did too. I could see that, even though we were running at top speed, we were still slower than the train. My heart dropped, fear started to clench at my stomach and lungs. The empty car went by slowly, but it took me a minute to realize it and by then the car had reached Rin. He grabbed the handle and swung himself up easily, but I stumbled.

I reached out for something to grab, only to find nothing until it was almost too late. I felt a strong hand grasp my own and yank me up, pulling me into the train harshly, but I didn't stop there.

When my feet hit the solid floor of the car my knees gave out and I fell into Terrin's chest. We both stumbled backwards and fell, hard, to the floor.

For a moment we laid there, trying to figure out what just happened. I became increasingly aware of his arms that warped securely around my waist, my head on his chest gently rising and falling with his breath, and that I was still on top of him.

"Oh my gosh…I'm so sorry, Terrin!" I stuttered, scrambling to get off of him and sitting next to him, leaning against the side of car.

"I told you not to call me that," he said as he pushed himself upright, trying to talk over the rumble of the train.

"Sorry…" I muttered, blushing.

He smiled at me warmly and it was as though somebody had lit a match inside me. I thought I just might melt, that is, until the sudden jostle of the train jerked me sideways and into Terrin's lap again.

"Just can't stay away from me, can you?" He winked, making me wish I could just jump off the train in embarrassment.

Pushing myself off of him once again I leaned back, yawning.

"If you're sleepy, you can go ahead and sleep." Terrin whispered in my ear.

I nodded and leaned my head back. I didn't even know why I was so tired, but it was as though all of my energy was sucked out of me. I sank further and further into sleep with the constant rumble of the train at my back.

As I slipped deeper into oblivion I was aware of Terrin pulling me back into his lap, his hands gently running through my hair.

* * *

><p>I woke later with a jolt and the sound of metal against metal screaming in my ears. My eyes flew open and my body tensed.<p>

"Whoa, whoa, calm down. We're just slowing." Terrin told me as he brushed a stray strand of hair from my face.

I relaxed slightly, but tensed again when I realized that I was still curled up with my head on Terrin's lap. However, his arm was draped across me and I didn't want to move. He looked so peaceful it seemed like it would be a crime to move him in any way.

"How long have I been out?" I asked, rubbing sleep from my eyes.

"Only a couple of hours," Rin told me.

I chuckled slightly," And I bet nothing interesting happened in those couple hours."

"Not at all," He said, laughing with me.

We sat in silence, or I guess there was the train, but we were silent. The world outside of the car zipped past in a blur. It was starting to get dark, much to my surprise. Looking at Terrin I could see the last lights reflecting on his golden hair and eyes, making him seem almost angelic.

He smiled slightly," See anything interesting?"

I looked away and fiddled my thumbs. He was just teasing me, I knew that, but I was still surprised he could feel me looking at him.

"Hey, Pace?" he said, his smile gone.

"Yes?" I asked, still embarrassed.

"Why don't you think our parents ever set up like…little play dates for us? Since they were old friends and all…" I glanced up at him, meeting his golden eyes

I thought about this a moment trying to think of a logical answer for his question, but I couldn't. I couldn't see why our parents had kept us apart for so long. As I thought, I pushed myself up into a sitting position, stretching and popping my back.

"I really don't know…" I told him.

He frowned," We coulda known each other so much better…"

I nodded, he was right. Had we known each other before we ran into one another we could have been great friends. I couldn't believe my dad would keep me away from Terrin.

"We could always start now," He said, chuckling lightly.

"That's true."

Once again we were left in silence, neither of us wanting to ask the first question. We stared each other down, waiting for someone to break and finally ask a question. When neither of us did we both broke into a smile. A smile that turned into a laugh. We laughed like no one was watching. I loved his laugh. It was a deep but soft laugh, almost like gentle thunder.

"Want me to start?" He asked, still laughing.

I nodded and waited for him to ask something.

"How deep am I allowed to go?" He asked first.

I spread my arms open to say I had no secrets. He nodded and returned to thinking about the first question.

"What's your favorite color?" Rin asked me, looking genuinely curious.

I thought about this. Never having thought about having a favorite color, I really didn't know which one I liked more. So I settled for something soothing to me," Yellow. What's yours?"

"Blue," He responded without having to think.

"Day or night?" I shot back, a grin slowly stretching across my face.

"Night," Rin started to smile back.

"I agree," I mused, glancing out at the dark sky outside the train car.

"Dusk or Dawn?" Rin asked, spinning off of my other question.

"Dawn," I smiled fully.

"Again, I agree" Rin answered my smile.

There was a long moment of silence while we both thought, before I glanced at him, "So, what's it like to live with the famous Edward Elric?"

Rin blinked at me, "Uh, it's weird, not weird in that everyone knows cause almost nobody does, but rather because I know that my father was the man who managed to defeat the king at sixteen. I think it also makes me think that I should be doing those same big things, now that I'm that age." I nodded, as he looked down at his hands, lost in thought.

Again, silence fell ever us, this time Rin broke the silence, "So…you don't have to answer this, but…what's it like living with a blind person?"

I blinked at him for a moment, before grinning, "Don't worry, it's fine!"

I thought for a moment, "Well…at first I didn't understand why not everyone had a blind dad like mine, but as I got older I always felt a bit of pride for my dad."

"What about at home?" Rin seemed truly curious, which made me smile at him.

"As surprising as it is, as long as we keep the house clean, and don't move anything around, he can move around like any other person," I grinned, remembering the one time that I had moved the table, and the large welt that had been left on my dad's leg as a result. "And, arguably, he can even cook a little bit better than I can."

Rin laughed, "Man, does that mean that he's a good cook? Or should I handle our meals?"

I blushed slightly, "He's just a good cook! Okay?"

He smiled at me brightly, "Don't worry, I'm just teasing you."

I could feel my blush darken, "Alright…"

After this, we fell into a comfortable silence, as I turned my head to look out of the train car.

This time the silence stretched on for about an hour, before I noticed that Rin was flipping through the book that his dad had given him, "What's that?"

Rin glanced up at me, and back down at the book, "It's my dad's old travel log…and his notes."

"His notes?" I asked, looking over to see that it looked like a plain travel log. "Can you read his code?"

It was common knowledge of any alchemist to have a code of sorts for their notes, even I have one.

Rin nodded slowly, "I was able to break his code when I was younger, much to his and Uncle's shock."

"That's amazing!" I smiled at him, causing him to shoot me a dazzling smile.

"Yeah, well" he said with a slight blush. "What was it that your dad gave you?"

I blinked, and pulled out the gloves, "These? They are ignition gloves, for fire alchemy."

He blinked at me, surprise flashing across his face, "Really?! That's so cool!"

I smiled at him, "Yeah, I've always used my dad's, but…these are different…"I pulled the surprisingly soft glove on, feeling it fit perfectly. "They are made to fit me perfectly."

Rin looked amazed, as I flexed my fingers, "How long have you been using fire alchemy?"

I thought for a moment, "Sense I was little, four."

Rin's eyes were wide, "Really? That's a long time, thirteen years …will you show me?"

I smiled and nodded, slowly standing to poke my head outside the car to make sure that we weren't anywhere near civilization, all I could see was dark cornfields.

After sitting down across from Rin, I gently rubbed my fingers together, feeling the sparks jump between them.

"So, in order to use fire alchemy, I need to have a spark," I started, deciding to make it a mini lesson. "And the rest comes from around us."

Rin nodded, his full attention on me, much to my minor embarrassment, "And you said that you can use prayer alchemy as well?"

I nodded, and turned my hands to show Rin the backs, "That's why I don't have the transmutation circles like my father did before and during the war."

I was surprised, at the spark of curiosity in Rin's eyes, "All you have to do is snap, right?"

I nodded, snapping my fingers without needing the transmutation circle, the spark glowing harshly for a split second, "However, if these gloves ever get wet, they are useless."

Rin had a serious look on his face, "But you _are _able to fight without fire alchemy, right?"

I nodded, "As I said when we first met, I've never been too proud of being a fire alchemist. After what you told me, I was able to find a new light on it, and now can truly respect it."

I snapped my fingers again, allowing a small flame to light up the area just above my hand, filling the train cart in a warm glow.

Rin's eyes glowed in the gentle light, as I manipulated the oxygen around the flame, making it dance.

"One of the biggest things that I had to learn from my father was control," I continued with my lesson. "'Fire is a truly beautiful, and dangerous thing', he would tell me. And 'Just as a mustang can never truly be tamed, neither can fire'."

"Wow," Rin was in awe, his golden eyes reflecting the flame, as I fuelled it enough to extend upward, in a spiraling dance.

The questions and answers continued for another few hours, before sleep finally overtook me.

* * *

><p>When I woke next, it was bright, and Rin was stretching besides me. He looked so peaceful, and concentrated that I felt bad thinking of interrupting.<p>

"How long until we get there?" I finally asked, my voice seeming too quiet in the noisy car.

"I'd say not long, but I'm not entirely sure."

"Are we riding all the way till we get to Central?"

"Or at least the outskirts of Central, just to be safe."

I nodded in his lap and stared out the car doors. They were still open because we figured that, since we were out of a residential area, the train would speed up and no one would jump on or see us. But I watched as the world raced by. Every now and again we'd slow down as we went through small towns, but we'd speed up again before we knew it.

It was a few minutes before we said anything but Terrin broke the silence," Hey, Pace…"

"Yes?" I asked, curious what he was going to say.

He blushed and looked away from me, "Never mind…It's embarrassing."

"Say it!" I said, lightly punching his shoulder.

"Well…it's just…you look cute when you're asleep." He whispered, just barely loud enough for me to hear.

"Oh…um…thanks." I laughed, brushing a piece of hair from my face.

* * *

><p>The next few hours were spent in relative silence, as I stared out the open doors, lost in thoughts of my mother.<p>

"We'll have to jump off soon," Terrin told me, pulling me from my thoughts.

I nodded and sat up, "Okay."

"My thinking is that we'll jump before we reach the town," Terrin said looking out the door.

"But won't that mean we'll be jumping as the train is going full speed?" I asked, terrified of the thought.

He laughed at me," No, no. The train slows down before we reach the city. Don't worry."

Rin stuck his head out the door for a moment before looking back at me, "Alright, we're jumping soon so get ready."

I nodded, standing to walk over to where he stood. He continued to start out the car. We waited. Waited for a time to get ready.

The familiar screech of metal on metal signaled that the train was slowing down,

"Get ready!" Terrin yelled over the squeal of the tracks.

He jumped off quickly and I followed, adrenalin pumping through my veins like fire. The landing was harsh. It felt like we had hit concrete jumping from a third story window. We rolled a few yards before stopping, the train still moving on. I had half expected that it would stop and someone would come back for us, but it didn't. Rin was scratched in many places and my ankle hurt terribly, but I didn't bother.

As it turns out, we had jumped just in time. Had we jumped any later and we'd be splats on a wall. A house, and the beginning of the town, started here. I was surprised that it wasn't much different from Pisu. Suddenly starting and automatically compact.

I stood up and went to get Terrin so that we could get going, but he was still lying on the ground. As I got closer I realized he was struggling to breath and looked like he was in pain.

"You okay there?" I asked him, offering a hand to help him to his feet.

"Yea," He sighed," I'm good. Sorry, let's go."

He pushed himself up without taking my outstretched hand and brushed off his cloths.

"Are you okay?" Rin asked me, looking me up and down for injuries.

I thought for a moment about telling him about my ankle, but I decided not to, "Yes, I'm fine."

A flicker of movement caught my eye and I turned quickly to see what it was. However, I couldn't move fast enough and all I saw was the silhouette of someone running away.

Terrin grabbed my hand and quickly pulled me behind the nearest building, "Did he see us jump?"

"I-I don't know. I didn't notice him until he moved, but he could have seen us…" I whispered.

"Let's just get moving, okay?"

I nodded and pulled my hood over my head, making sure Rin did the same. Before we headed off I pushed a stray strand of Rin's golden hair out of his face and then we were off.

We kept our heads low as we entered the city. We got many stares and I started to feel extremely nervous. My heart racing and my palms sweaty. Suddenly, Terrin turned onto a smaller street covered with dirt rather than pavement.

"We're being followed," He hissed at me, "Keep quiet and don't look back."

I nodded silently as he turned onto another street, this one much more abandoned looking. The sidewalks were cracked and the houses exterior suffered from both inflicted and weathered damage. The streetlights here leaned in many directions and maybe one or two still stood.

Terrin growled in frustration, we had reached a three way turn off. If we kept going straight or turned left we'd enter a new part of the town, leaving us only one option. We had to turn right.

This street was just as abandoned looking, as we quickly walked down the street, Rin glancing behind us every so often.

"Damn," he growled suddenly, as he started pulling me to move faster, a slow jog. "There's more of them…at least six."

"Stop! Intruders!" a voice called out from behind us, causing me to glance back. Rin was right, there were about six guards following after us. He grasped my hand and pulled me into a run.

Rin let out a growl, and without slowing clapped his hands and slammed them down on the ground, forming a large stone wall.

"Damn! They're Alchemists! Stop them!" the same voice yelled, as the soldiers scrambled to run around the wall. One of them had a harsh whistle, and was calling out to others, who came out of various buildings.

As we raced down the street, away from Central, and more towards the fields, a loud barking joined the mass of shouting behind us.

Besides me, Rin was struggling to breathe, much to my surprise, and was starting to slow.

Suddenly, another green clad officer burst through a door in front of us, and a bang resounded from the gun he held.

To my shock, Rin cried out, stumbling as the bullet lodged itself into his right shoulder.

"Rin!" I yelled, slowing down to help him.

"No!" He shouted, clutching at his shoulder. "Run, Damn it!"

"No! I won't leave you!" I screamed back, reaching to pull him forward.

Rin cried out once again as the dog caught up, attaching itself to Rin's left calf, before I was able to pull him away. He struggled hard, falling down and kicking at the dog's snout, as I saw that the soldiers were getting closer.

Clapping my hands I slammed them down and transmutated another wall, and a spike that burst up into the dog's neck, forcing it away from Rin's leg.

Rin cried out again as the dog's teeth were ripped away from his calf, but struggled to stand, pushing himself up just in time for the soldiers to get around the wall.

As Rin struggled to stand, I quickly slid my gloves on, and snapped, a large wall of fire exploding from my fingers. As I grit my teeth and tried to ignore the screaming soldiers, Rin was finally on his feet again.

He grabbed my hand firmly and started pulling me out of the city, clearly running off of an adrenalin high.

* * *

><p>Roy was pacing.<p>

It had only been a few days sense his baby girl had left, and he still couldn't shake the bad feeling he had in his heart.

Because of these worries, Roy had gotten very little sleep, and knew that he had dark bags under his sightless eyes.

CRASH

Roy sighed, already knowing that it was the Elric brothers, and guessed that they had been experiencing the same stresses and worries.

"We should have gone with them!" Ed's voice boomed through the small house, as Roy stopped pacing and turned to face them. If he had to guess by the exhaustion in Ed's voice, they both had dark bags underneath their eyes.

"They shouldn't have gone in the first place!" Alphonse's voice cut in with the sound of two heavy thumps on Roy's old sofa.

The air was thick with tension, before Roy nodded, "We'll just have to go after them!"

The agreement was unanimous.

* * *

><p>Thunder rumbled from the swirling storm clouds as we continued to run through an old back road in the middle of a wheat field.<p>

We had kept a rather fast pace, but it wasn't enough. Soon the sound of barking dogs could be heard from behind us.

Up ahead I spotted a bridge, and was quick to pull Rin under, who almost immediately collapsed, his adrenaline gone.

Quickly kneeling down, I shifted Rin so his head was in my lap, breathing heavily as the sound of barking and shouting peaked, before fading.

Gently I peeled away the blood soaked fabric of Rin's shirt, and gasped, at how much blood there was.

"We need to keep moving," Rin muttered softly, struggling to sit up. "We'll be found soon."

I nodded, and gently helped him to stand, and pulled his uninjured arm over my shoulder. I could feel his warmth leaving him, as we continued out from under the bridge and down the dirt road.

I needed to find help, and fast.

* * *

><p><strong>ANNDDD CLIFFY! Please don't hurt us!<strong>

**But don't worry! We already have chapter Six written and going through the {rather extensive} editing process! **

**"I think…I want to live with all my memories. Even if they're sad memories. Even if they're memories that only hurt me. Even if…they're memories I'd rather forget"**

**Please review~!**


	6. Chapter 6

**{OMG OMG OMG! This is one of the best responses that I've gotten for any of my stories! Thanks guys!} **

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**Practice4morale: Thank you for your amazing review! I appreciate how excited you are about reading my story. And I must say, I find your reviews exhilarating to read. And as my beautiful co-author has mentioned…ITS SUMMER! So we'll be cranking these out…hopefully…if we don't slack.{As I said before, a million thanks for ALL of your reviews! Definitely made me smile *cough at 2:30 in the morning cough*}**

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**DeyaniraSan:I thank you for reviewing my writing along with the story. It's always great to hear that someone else thinks your writing is amazing! I couldn't have done it without Silv though. ****J**** However, I have to say, I think it is highly unlikely that you'll be able to kick my ass. Plus, good luck finding me. ;) haha. ****{Nyahhh…thanks! And fun fact of the day…Saki-chan here has her second degree black belt in tae kwon do…all of our friends are afraid of her ^_^ }**

* * *

><p>During the course of the next week, Ed, Roy, and Al gathered the few belongings they'd take with them. Roy had his gloves without the alchemy circles and his walking cane. Ed had his father's travel journal and Al had a bottle of a clear liquid.<p>

When it was finally time, they met up at Roy's house where they then headed to the train tracks.

"Roy," Ed started, but didn't finish, Roy could feel his eyes burning into the slim cane in his hand.

"Yes, I will take my cane. It'll make me seem like I'm helpless," Roy responded, his voice tightening at the last word.

"Let's head out, or we'll miss the train." Al suggested.

They all nodded and started out, moving quickly through the town to make it to the train. The ground rumbled with the oncoming train, lose gravel trembling slightly. Roy waited, his hand on Ed's shoulder, ready to run when Ed took off.

The vibrations in the ground reached a peak and Ed took off, Roy and Alphonse following closely. As Ed jumped onto the train Roy waited, his head outstretched waiting for Ed to grab it and pull him in. After Roy had swung in, Al jumped on and sat down.

"Now we just ride and pray we get off in the same town as our kiddos did…" Ed told Roy.

Roy nodded, fiddling with the edge of his shirt, they were in for a long ride.

* * *

><p>"Rin, hold on," I gasped, feeling him slump against me.<p>

We were stumbling down a dirt country road, surrounded by what I would have guessed was wheat.

As we walked, the skies had opened to a steady drizzle that was quickly turning into a downpour. I had no idea where to go and was getting desperately lost. We were both soaked through, which made me worry about Rin. He was losing a lot of blood as it was and the rain was just washing it away so that more flowed through.

I shifted him across my shoulders and walked a little faster as house lights flickered on to light the dark. Our shadows stretching across the street.

As I continued walking down the muddy road a cart pulled up next to me, an elderly woman sitting on the front, "Y'all okay?"

I turned slightly to see the woman, but Rin leaned heavier on me, causing my knees to buckle. Kneeling down I pulled him around to see his face. His eyes were closed and a soft grunt escaped his lips.

The elderly woman slipped off the cart and knelt down next to me, her kind blue eyes watching me quietly. The large tarp that covered the back of her cart flapped in the wind, bales of hay kept dry underneath.

She saw the blood that covered my hands and the front of Rin's shirt. Her eye's widened when she looked closer at his wound.

I hesitated slightly before looking at her, "H-help!"

"What happened?" She asked, grabbing Rin's left arm and helping me get him to his feet, "Never mind, that's not important right now. Let's get him on the cart quickly. My husband's a doctor, he can help."

Still wary I nodded as we moved to the back of the cart, gently pulling Rin onto the back of the bales of hay. He whimpered softly as I pulled him further back and made sure the tarp covered us. The hay was still warm from the earlier sun and it was much welcomed.

Suddenly, the motors of trucks sounded over the pitter patter of rain on the tarp and I froze.

"Stay quiet and don't move!" The woman said, climbing back onto the seat, "Those are military trucks and they don't like strange children like y'all wanderin' aroun'."

I flattened myself next to Rin, placing an arm around him to prevent him from falling off, praying that he wouldn't move or make a sound.

A moment later the cart lurched forward and the roar of the military trucks got louder. As the roar reached its peak a gust of wind ruffled the tarp and I caught a glimpse of the trucks passing the small horse drawn cart.

The truck engines faded just as quickly as they came and all that remained was the sound of rain hitting the tarp.

"Y'all good back there?" The woman called back, the cart lurching forward again as we went faster.

"Yeah," I shouted back, shifting to check on Rin. His face was flushed and I could feel his blood start to soak they hay around us, "Miss! Please hurry!"

"Hold on! We're almost there." She shouted, urging the horse to a trot.

About three minutes later the cart slowed to a stop. The tarp had long since soaked through, leaving me chilled to the bone. Sitting up I pushed the tarp off of Rin and me to see a small two story building with a warm porch light.

The door opened suddenly and a large floppy eared dog loped out, followed closely by an elderly man.

"Nelly! You're late," He called as the woman, Nelly, jumped off the cart and ran to the back to help me pull Rin off the cart.

"Who are they?" He asked as we pulled Rin off the hay and started running inside.

* * *

><p>The train bumped along the tracks loudly, but Roy could still hear the slosh of a liquid in Alphonse's pocket. Ed had passed out minutes after they'd gotten on the train, leaving Roy and Al to themselves.<p>

"Hey, Alphonse," Roy hollered, trying to speak over the roar of the train.

"Yes?" Al responded.

"What's that liquid in your pocket?" Roy asked him.

Alphonse pulled the bottle out of his pocket," Its Life Water."

"What's Life Water?"

Alphonse thought a moment before answering, "It's a clear liquid that, when poured, will turn into whatever the pourer needs most. It is, however, unexpected and often times not what the pourer had in mind. Once it's poured it doesn't turn back into the original liquid, so it must only be used in the most severe circumstances."

"Huh," Roy muttered," I've never heard of such a thing."

"My brother and I made it years and years ago when we visited May in Xing. We found the idea so intriguing, but it took us many tries to get it right. But when we did, we had to keep some of it. So we did, and we haven't used it since. We'll never get to go back and we don't have the ingredients to make it in Pisu, so we've been saving it for something serious" Alphonse explained.

"Ah…makes sense," Roy said, trying to make sense of the idea behind Life Water, "Sounds like it could come in handy."

* * *

><p>It had been a few hours since the adults had jumped into the train, and Roy wasn't able to sit still.<p>

Roy paced the width of the train anxiously. Ed and Al sat, whispering amongst themselves.

"We have no idea where they got off…" Ed told Alphonse quietly.

Al nodded, "Surely they'd have rode it out until they got to the outskirts of Central or closer…"

"But, where's that?" Ed asked, frustrated.

Roy answered without stopping his frantic pacing, "At least a week or so."

Ed and Al looked up at Roy, watching him pace, before looking back at each other.

"Roy, sit down. We've only been on the train for a couple hours, we still have days to go." Alphonse told him.

Reluctantly Roy sat down, fiddling with his fingers nervously as he did so. Ed and Al rolled their eyes.

"Didn't you say yourself that they'd be fine?" Ed pointed out.

Roy nodded, glaring in the direction of Ed's voice. He knew Ed was right, and that Pace and Terrin would be fine, but he couldn't help but feel worried for his baby girl. She'd been so sheltered for most of her life and now he felt as though he himself had sent his daughter to her death.

"Quit worrying, Colonel," Alphonse whispered, placing a hand gently on Roy's shoulder," They'll be fine. Terrin will protect your daughter, and besides! We have many allies who should recognize them."

"What if the wrong people recognize them?" Roy asked, still fiddling his fingers.

"Then they'll hide," Ed said, annoyed, "Jesus Colonel, would ya stop worrying so much! You're making me nervous."

"Quit calling me that…" Roy muttered, leaning back against the train's wall.

The ride went quiet except for the constant rumble of the train bouncing along the tracks. Roy closed his sightless eyes, praying for sleep to carry him closer to his daughter. Hoping that she'll be okay, that she'll survive and stay free long enough for them to catch up.

* * *

><p>I heard a shifting of feet behind me as a towel was draped over my shoulders, "Gettin' sick won't help yer friend, ya know,"<p>

Nelly stood in front of me, hands on hip and a kind smile on her face.

"Don't worry about 'im. If my husband has anything to do with 'im, he'll be good as new in no time."

I pulled my hair out of its previous pony tail as Nelly sat next to me.

"You know, my husband and I helped out with your parents when they were in a similar situation. Your mother was so worried."

I looked at her in shock, pulling the towel off my head," M-My parents?"

"Yer father was such a stubborn man, refusing to stay in bed as soon as he was able to use a cane," She smiled as she stood, "Now, why don't ya take a shower and I'll make ya some hot soup. Yer extra cloths should be dry by now."

"And don' worry 'bout your friend," a deeper voice rang out as the man from earlier, who I had leared was Mr. McAnderson, came down the stairs. "He'll be fine."

I stood, "Can I see him?"

Before he was able to answer Nelly cut him off, "Not until ya've taken a shower and eaten a bowl of hot soup."

I was about to protest, but the look on her face was shockingly close to that of my father's when he was determined. So I grabbed my towel and stood, letting Nelly show me to the bathroom, "Okay."

Moments later I stood in a rather large bathroom with a white tiled floor and baby-blue walls. The shower itself was tucked into the wall with a shower curtain covering the entrance. A mirror hung on the wall along with a rack of towels.

Nelly set my clothes on the sink and closed the door, "You wash up and come down for some soup. Then you can see your friend."

I looked at the mirror one last time before I let my pants fall to the floor and took off my shirt, ready to start the shower.

As I stepped in, closing the shower curtain behind me, I was surprised to see a sparkling clean, white surface shining back at me. The knobs were colored, red and blue, so I guessed. Hoping that the red meant hot and the blue meant cold I turned the red one first, almost screeching as cold water rained down on my head. But the water warmed quickly and started to burn, so I turned the blue one. This cooled the water as steam started to rise with the steady heat of the water.

* * *

><p>I stepped out of the shower, ruffling my damp hair in the towel and drying off before putting my clothes on. Nelly was quick to pull me back to the small table with a bowl of steaming soup, chicken noodle soup.<p>

I stared at the large bowl as a large piece of bread next to it. This, is by far, the most food I've seen in my life. In Pisu we're rationed and can only eat so much.

"Go on, eat up!" Nelly urged me, sitting down with her own bowl of soup.

Slowly, I dipped the silver spoon into the soup, lifting the steaming liquid up to my mouth. Closing my eyes I sipped on the delicious soup.

Before I realized I was eating so quickly my bowl was empty, and I was nibbling on the bread, feeling fuller than I've ever been.

"Can…" I started before looking a Nelly's husband, who had just walked down the stairs.

"Can you see your friend?" He asked as I stood and nodded.

"Terrin, his name is Terrin," I added as he nodded and gestured for me to follow him.

He grinned before looking at me, "Alright, and I warn you now, you barely made it on time."

"What do you mean?" I asked, dread filling my chest.

"It got really close at times," he said as we stopped outside a closed door," If you had been only five minutes later, he wouldn't have made it."

I sucked in a quiet breath, "Will he be okay?"

He nodded," If everything goes smoothly, he'll be up and about in about four weeks."

I sighed, relieved that Rin was going to be okay. A little part in the back of my mind wincing at the amount of time we're going to be delayed.

"Also, he's running a fever, but he's sleeping right now," He added, before opening the door slowly.

As we entered I gasped at Rin's form. He laid in the twin-sized bed against the wall, covered in bandages. They covered his chest and shoulders, the sheets covering up to mid-chest. There were IV's in his arm, one with a clear fluid, and another with a red liquid, blood. His face was flushed red, a clear sign of the fever Mr. McAnderson warned me about. On the other side of the bed, Rin's leg was propped up under the blanket.

As I slowly walked in and sat down in the chair next to his head, Mr. McAnderson started listing off what was wrong, "So, his gunshot wound in his shoulder was the worst off, but if it keeps clean and doesn't get infected it should heal up cleanly, hopefully with minimal scaring. With that said, I'll be having him keep his arm in a sling for the time being, in order to keep the stress off of the muscle around the wound. Along with that he has five broken ribs, and should stay off his leg for a couple weeks. I'd say up to two weeks in bed, at the least."

I nodded, not taking my eyes away from Rin's flushed face. Despite the 'sick glow' in his face, he looked slightly pained.

Sighing softly, I slowly reached out and gently brushed his sweaty bangs out of his face, inwardly wincing at the heat radiating off of his skin.

Glancing around, I noticed that there was a bowl with a rag and cool water. Quickly, I grabbed the rag, soaking it in the water, and wringing it.

Gently I placed the rag on his forehead, cleaning away the sweat and cooling him down. After rinsing the rag again, I folded it and lay it on his forehead. Sitting back after a moment I watched his face.

Everything hit me at once. I leaned forward, gasping silently. I could feel the tears welling in my eyes," Oh Rin, I almost lost you…" I whispered, grabbing his bandaged hand gently in mine.

* * *

><p><strong>Welp, there's chapter 6 for ya! <strong>

**Chapters should be coming out nice and fast, while summers coming at us full blast!**

**{ALRIGHT! So we have our first winner for our little quote contest thingy… Practice4morale! Yay! She was able to identify the quote from the last chapter was from Fruits Basket, said by Momiji (Or bunny boy) so she gets a gold star and a virtual cookie of her choice XDDD} **

**Speaking of quotes…this chapter's quote is in honor of the new movie that just came out for it! {Major hint! and personally this one is waaayyy easy}**

** "It's a metaphor, see: You put the killing thing right between your teeth, but you don't give it the power to do its killing." **


	7. Chapter 7

**{Sorry about deleting this for a little bit, my computer had a minor breakdown and some how managed to mess up my user page . So i ended up adding one little line edit to the first section before re-posting if you guys still want to read through this again!}**

**First off, being sick sucks…like a lot. So sorry we've been slower that wanted…I've been sleeping A LOT.**

**{Second, getting distracted by John Green, and other various fun lazy things is NOT my fault . }**

**And just so you guys know , marching band is starting up already, for both of us, so updating will probably slow just a bit, but not too much. **

**Thanks to everybody who has taken time out of their day to read our little story!  
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**REVIEW RESPONSES! **

**Practice4morale: I totally understand being allergic to everything! It sucks…that and I'm just picky. And lucky for you, I have OCD and cannot abandon a story half way through, unless I hate it, which I don't hate this one! And I thank you again for the amazing review! {You are absolutely amazing, as always! Thanks so much! And this *Pulls out a steaming extra big gluten-free cinnamon oatmeal raison cookie with nuts and a tall iced cup of lactose free milk* is for you!}**

**DeyaniraSan: I know you were kidding, plus I'd be too sick to fight back at the moment…ANYWAY! As I said to Practice4morale…it is now impossible for me to abandon this story. So that'll never happen. And for the record, we're all annoying in our own way…some of us just have more ways than others. ;) {Well…I'm pretty annoying myself, and yet Saki-chan has yet to kick me out…so join the club! Lol!}**

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><p>He was in pain. Then numbing veil that he'd been covered in was slowly pulling away. Consciousness seeping its way in once more.<p>

As Terrin was pushed further and further out of oblivion, he became more aware of the many pains pulsing through his body, along with his surroundings.

He lay on the softest thing in his life, momentarily alarming him, only for him to relax again, feeling a soft hand lightly clinging to his own. As Terrin floated closer to consciousness the slight tug on his chest and aching in his leg and shoulder became more prominent. There was also a slight sting in his inner arm that caused the thought, _'Where am I?_' to float through his mind.

With that question in mind Terrin struggled to lift his heavy eyelids.

After a moment of struggling, he was able to crack open his eyes to see that he was staring up at a wooden ceiling. Slowly, he looked around and guessed he was in some kind of guest room with a small desk and dresser.

As Terrin continued to look around, there was a slight squeeze on his left hand. Turning to see what it was, he was surprised at the sight he was met with.

Pace sat in a chair next to his bed, leaning over with her head on the side of the bed and her hand gently folded around his. Her dark hair fell in a halo across the sheets, and he could see the dark bags circled that her eyes, darker than the ones she had before.

As Terrin continued to watch her, a gentle smile on his face, the door opened. The sound startled him to such a degree that he jumped, causing his shoulder to cry out.

"Ah! You're awake!" exclaimed the elderly man who had entered as he shut the door, "That's good."

Terrin blinked slowly, watching as the man came to a stop next to his side, fiddling with the IV in his arm, "You cut it close young man. You've been out for about a week and a half now and this little lady has refused to leave your side for even a moment."

He motioned to the still sleeping Pace, causing Terrin to blink in surprise. He summoned up what little strength he had to squeeze Pace's hand gently, causing her to stir slightly before settling again.

"She's a brave one. I'm surprised she was even able to carry you for that long. From what I hear you had just about passed out after you guys left the bridge and that's miles from here," the old man started mumbling," Granted, Nelly found y'all a little after that and helped with that, but still! She's a keeper." He said, winking at him before he turned to leave.

Terrin was left in shock. _'Just how long had she carried me?'_ Pace stirred once again, her beautiful electric blue eyes blinking open. She yawned cutely, squeezing his hand gently, before freezing mid-stretch when he managed to squeeze hers in return.

She looked down at him slowly and gasped, tears forming in her eyes. Leaning forward she whispered softly to him, "Rin, a-are you really awake?"

Terrin weakly smiled, as he nodded and she gently shifted his bangs out of his eyes.

Pace smiled widely, the tears welling in her eyes spilling over, "You're really awake."

She leaned forward, laying her head on my chest, as her tears fell onto the bandages.

"I almost lost you…" She sobbed, bringing her head up to his.

It took Terrin a moment to realize what happened next as a zap of electricity ran through his lips. _'Is this really happening?'_ he wondered as she leaned into him, her soft lips pressing gently against his.

"Wow," she sighed, pulling back, a dark blush staining her cheeks.

Terrin opened his mouth to answer only to cough painfully, his throat dry.

"Oh," Pace's eyes widened as she grabbed a cup of water from a small beside table, "Here."

Gently, she slid her arm under his head and shoulders, lifting him to drink a mouthful of water.

After she lay him back down, Terrin smiled up at her, his voice rough from disuse, "To think, we only met a month ago."

She smiled back, slipping her hand into his once again, "Well…Going through something like this can really push people together."

After a moment of silence, the old man from before came in again, "Alright! I'm Mr. McAnderson."

Terrin nodded as Mr. McAnderson came to the side of the bed opposite of Pace.

"So you've been in a mighty state for a while," he started, his voice taking on a professional tone. "A bullet wound to the right shoulder, five broken ribs, and a harsh bite on the left calf. I'd say at least another week and a half in bed to be safe. And one more thing, you're gonna be awful weak for a couple a day's having just broke your fever."

Terrin winced at the time they were losing, as Pace rubbed his shoulder gently in reassurance, as he nodded reluctantly.

"You've been drifting in and out of consciousness for the past few days," Pace whispered softly into Terrin's ear. "Because of the fever."

_'That would explain he 'really awake' comment' _He thought.

Sharp pain coursed through his bound chest as he pushed back a yawn and failed. Pace looked worried but Mr. McAnderson smiled slightly, moving to grab something form a table on the other side of the table. Inserting a needle into the IV leading to Terrin's arm, he said," Now, get some rest, you'll be able to talk later. You still need to heal."

Terrin sighed, feeling a numbness flow through his veins, followed by a wave of drowsiness. He allowed himself to slip back into oblivion, feeling soft lips press against his forehead as he dropped off the cliff.

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><p>Roy, Ed, and Al jumped off just outside this little town on the outskirts of what they hoped was Central. Each having done this a million times before, they landed gracefully, rolled slightly, and stood without a scratch. Even Roy, who had almost jumped too late, managed to do this as gracefully as a tiger jumping off of a rock.<p>

As they were brushing themselves off Roy felt utterly helpless. His hearing was exceptional, but not being able to see was quite the hindrance. Ed and Al looked around, the buildings for the town started suddenly. So suddenly, in fact, that if they had jumped any later they'd be like bugs squashed against the nearest building.

"We should get moving," Roy told the brothers who nodded in agreement.

Pulling their cloaks on and their hoods low, they started walking towards the small town. Roy held his walking cane in front of him, tapping it from side to side, to "see" where he was going and making sure he didn't run into anything.

Ed smirked slightly, "Remember the first time we snuck into Central?"

Al and Roy nodded, laughing quietly.

"We were new to jumping off of trains at all, much less with a blind man, and we got up all sorts of scratched up," Al whispered as they entered the towns streets.

Roy chuckled a little louder than he meant to, listened nervously, then continued the conversation, "We had tried to surprise our wives with coming to them for once."

"And instead they were terribly upset with us for trying to see them in the most guarded part of Amestris," Ed winced, rubbing his head where Winry had thrown the wrench at him.

"Didn't even matter, we hadn't been caught!" Alphonse whispered, exasperated.

The conversation went quiet as Ed and Al noticed the surplus of soldiers that seemed to overtake the sidewalks. They were asking people if they'd seen two children holding posters of what they guessed were said children's pictures.

As one caught sight of the trio walking down the sidewalk, the soldier started walking in their direction. Ed coughed quietly, signaling to Roy that a soldier was in front of him. He stopped short of hitting the soldier's ankle.

"Good evening sir's," the soldier started, "Might I have a minute of your time?"

It wasn't really a question, more of a demand that they listen to what he has to say. The trio nodded and waited for the soldier to speak.

Holding up the picture for them to see the soldier asked, "Have you seen these two kids?"

Roy lifted his hood to show the soldier his gray, sightless eyes and whispered, "Sir, what's on that piece of paper?"

"Oh," The soldier said, pulling the paper back, "We're looking for two teenage children."

At that Roy's heart jumped, as did Ed and Al's. They had to be talking about Rin and Pace.

"One is male," The soldier continued, "with golden eyes and blonde hair. But he's badly injured and couldn't have made it that far. The other is female with dark hair and blue eyes."

Ed gritted his teeth before saying, politely, "I can't say we've seen those kids 'round here."

The soldier looked suspicious, bending slightly at the waist as though he were trying to see underneath Ed and Al's hoods. The trio held their breath. Suddenly, there was an outburst of commotion behind them and across the street. The soldier straightened and started walking towards the sounds.

"If you see anything suspicious, let us know. They're alchemists and considered extremely dangerous," The soldier said before running off.

"Well, we're in the right town," Alphonse whispered, as the trio started down the street again.

"I think I might know where they are…" Roy muttered.

"What?" Ed asked excitedly, but was met with a shush from Roy and Al.

"I know where they'd be. These people would definitely recognize our kids…or at least my daughter…and they'd help them for sure," Roy told the brothers.

"Great! Where do we go?" Ed and Al asked in unison.

"We have to find a street named Little Tey," Roy announced after thinking for a minute.

Ed whispered anxiously, "Then it's decided! Let's start looking."

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><p>I sighed, walking out of the steamy bathroom.<p>

It had been two days sense Rin had woken up, and I've never felt so much relief.

Now that he was awake, Nelly had insisted that I slept in my own bed, and showered daily, something that I wasn't used to, which was so much easier than taking a bath was back in Pisu.

As I wandered back into Rin's room Nelly was there, handing Rin a tray of food. There was soup, bread, a glass of water, and a glass of milk. She smiled at me as she walked out of the room.

"Oh!" She almost shouted," Do you want me to bring you your meal?"

I nodded, turning back to Rin who was tearing into his meal. He looked better, more color in his face. He was currently propped up against a small mountain of pillows, with even more tucked under his leg. Luckily, the other night Mr. McAnderson had decided that Rin was feeling good enough to take out the IVs, so he was finally able to experience one Nelly's amazing meals. I knew his shoulder and leg still hurt, but he generally tried not to show it.

As I watched I noticed how he was ignoring the glass of water and was instead drinking the milk.

"Y-You like milk?" I asked him, knowing how his father despised the drink.

He nodded, taking another bite of his soup, "I actually love milk."

"That's weird. Isn't liking milk genetic or something?" I pondered aloud.

Rin shook his head, setting down his spoon to take another swig of milk, "Liking milk is actually a mutation. You're not supposed to like milk after you've stopped breast feeding, which is why people become lactose intolerant. So me liking milk at the age of seventeen is a mutation."

"And here I was thinking I had found a normal person to be friends with," I chuckled lightly.

Rin grinned at me, "Not a chance."

I smiled back, before frowning when I noticed that he was fiddling with the strap on his sling, repositioning it on his neck, and clenching his hand in it.

I glanced at his face to see a ghost of a grimace, "So how are you feeling?"

"I feel like shit…" He said, surprising me with how blunt he was about it. He shifted his arm again, clenching his hand slightly before relaxing it.

For a while, Mr. McAnderson had been afraid that the bullet wound had severed Rin's tendons, making his arm useless. Luckily, he still had full movement, as far as his hand and fingers. We would have to wait a little longer for his shoulder to heal more before we see how much movement he actually had.

"O-oh…Is there anything I can do?" I asked, hoping he's say yes.

He thought a minute but shook his head, "No. I'll be fine."

With that Nelly walked in with my meal, the same as Rin's, and handed it to me. Smiling slyly as she left once more.

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><p>Terrin was now well enough to get out of bed, but had to be on a crutch under his left arm. Pace worried about him constantly. Always right there, wondering if he needed anything. It was sweet, but he often felt bad that she had to worry about him.<p>

The crutch hurt and felt like it left huge bruises on his underarm, but surprisingly, there wasn't any. Mr. McAnderson had warned him that it'd do that, but Terrin was still unprepared.

Often Terrin found himself wondering what Pace thought about. She always seemed so lost in thought. She had decided to help around the house more often because she felt like Nelly and Mr. McAnderson needed help. She had been feeling guilty that they were eating their groceries and not helping out. Of course he had been feeling the same regrets, but there was little Terrin could do to help out, of course, but she started helping out with the cleaning.

After Pace had finished her portion of house cleaning for that day they sat on the back patio, listing to the sounds of mid-day. They could hear the sounds of trucks zipping by, or horse drawn carts clattering slowly in front of the house. The wind blew lightly, shifting their hair gently.

"I'm sorry, Pace," Terrin whispered, regretting it almost immediately afterwards.

She looked confused, "Why are you sorry?"

"We're losing so much time all because I was careless and got hurt…" Terrin sighed, staring down at his folded hands. They've lost almost two and a half weeks of time already. _'We could have been in Central by now, finding our mothers and changing the world as we know it.'_

"It's not your fault. You can't help that you were shot!" She exclaimed, almost angry with him.

"But…" Terrin started, glancing up only to look back down at his lap.

She cut him off, "I will not have you apologizing for something that was inevitable," She shouted, then quieted, "It's not your fault…I should have been watching your back. But…I was just scared. I didn't know what to do. I was useless…"

Terrin was shocked. _'Is that what she's been thinking about this whole time?'_ he looked up at her as a tear fell into her lap and she bent her head, fiddling her thumbs.

"No, Pace," Terrin pleaded, grabbing her hand, "It's not your fault either. This is new to both of us. We've learned, and we'll do better next time. Please, don't cry…"

Pace's blue eyes met his, tears falling slowly down her cheeks. Terrin used his left hand to wipe them away, smiling. She smiled back half-heartedly.

"Okay, Rin," She told him.

"You got my name right," he winked, causing her to giggle.

Terrin smiled back at her, as he sat back, relaxing into his chair.

A comfortable silence filled the air, and Terrin allowed himself to sink into his thoughts, drifting between how this has been the longest time he's been away from his dad and uncle, to how soon he'll be able to get rid of the stupid crutch.

Soon, the silence was broken by Nelly, who burst through the door, looking happy, "Alright kids! We need ya' ta' come in for a little while, there some people here for ya!"

This caused Terrin to tense, still feeling a tad suspicious of why they hadn't turned them into the military yet, "…Who?"

"Oh! A friend!" Nelly winked, before beckoning us in.

After exchanging a glance with Pace, Terrin nodded slightly, before grabbing his crutch with a slight grimace. With Pace's help, he slowly stood, wincing as he put too much pressure on his still healing leg.

Their efforts were for nothing, because a moment later the door opened again, and to their shock stood their fathers, and Terrin's uncle, all of them sporting anxious looks.

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><p><strong>Ohhh! Sorry for giving you guys another cliffy {we're just evil like that :3 }<strong>

**Anyway, chapter eight should be coming up soon! **

**SO! A big congratulations to DeyaniraSan for guessing ****The Fault in Our Stars**** correctly from last chapter! {I still think that was way easy…and props to practice4morale for pretty much describing the trailer without actually saying the title!}**

**{NOW! REVIEW! …Please!}**

**Quote~**

**"Don't give up! There's no shame in falling down! True shame is to not stand up again!"**


	8. Chapter 8

**{Yay! Chapter….8? …yeah 8!}**

**God you're struggling… {oh shut up…} **

**Thanks thanks thanks to EVERYONE who has stuck with us up til now! **

**REVIEWS!**

**Practice4morale: I have to say, we do indeed love our characters…a lot. Haha. But anyways, as always, thank you so much for the review! It's always good to hear! {and personally, I really like my badass blind dudes XD Thanks again for recommending us and you're amazing review!}**

**Mixmax300: Thank you for the amazing reviews! I'm totally soaking up your energy right now! Haha…not literally, but you know what I mean. {So, because Saki-chan fails to put her excitement, let me tell you that you are completely amazing! Just to let you know your reviews had me squealing extremely loudly at a very early time for my family XD Not to worry, a lot of your questions should be answered in this chapter, if not next chapter! Thanks again!} Okay…first of all. My excitement is at all times contained for peoples safety. {Yeah…last time she got over excited I was punched…extremely hard…} And second of all, Rin got those five broken ribs after jumping out of the train. That's why he was struggling to breathe. {This is said will the topmost love ^_^ } **

**{And now! ON TO THE CHAPTER! }**

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><p>I…was in shock. To say the least. Here I was, expecting someone I hardly knew to come squealing in, but no! Here stood, my father, and Rin's father and uncle. I don't think there's word to describe how I felt in that moment. I was overjoyed to see my father, but was curious as to why he was here.<p>

All of them were wearing anxious looks, which cleared from Ed and Al's faces when they caught sight of us, only for Ed's eyebrows to come together when his eyes traced the sling and crutch.

My father was standing completely still, as he listened for my voice, but I couldn't speak. Rin gawked at his father as though he'd just seen a purple pony.

My dad frowned, "Pace?" His voice held a pinch of fear.

"She's there, Roy," Ed reassured him as his face cleared and he smiled at Rin.

Rin looked over at me, jaw slack, and pointed. The obvious question of, _'What are they doing here?'_ written all over his face.

I shrugged, looking back at my father I whispered, "Dad?"

Automatically he started to walk towards me, but tripped on a chair, causing him to topple to the floor.

"God Damn it!" He shouted from where he lay.

Ed laughed hysterically as Alphonse snickered behind him. I could feel my father's rage as he started to stand again. It almost looked like he was going to go after them but had decided against it.

"Shut it Fullmetal!" He growled at Ed and the laughing ceased.

This was enough to shake me out of my shock, so I walked to my father, grabbing his hand. He immediately wrapped me in a strong hug.

"Pace," He whispered, squeezing me tightly to him. I was shocked by how much I had missed his hugs, as I snuggled my head into his strong shoulder.

"Daddy, what're you doing here?" I asked, unable to keep my silence in this touching moment.

He stopped hugging me as fiercely, but didn't let go as he muttered, "Because we were worried about you…"

I didn't know whether I should feel glad that he was here, or angry. I love him, but why did he worry about me? Did he not trust me?

Rin had overheard my father, "Wait…what'd ya mean, worried about us?"

Ed spoke up there, "Terrin, we have all the right to worry about you guys! I mean seriously, you're on crutches!"

"A crutch," Rin mumbled, shifting his weight slightly to lean more on said crutch, his leg clearly paining him.

The air was thick with tension as clouds started to roll in. Ed and Al held the same stubborn face Rin had when he's determined or angry. And my own father hung his head low, knowing I didn't like him worrying about me.

At that moment I felt the slight anger wash away, into a relief that I could see him again.

"Baby girl," My father whispered, almost sounding hurt even though I hadn't said anything. I shook my head against his shoulder, letting him know that I wasn't mad.

"Rin, don't be mad," Alphonse told him, speaking out for the first time.

Rin looked horrified, "We can handle ourselves! We just had a little run in with the military is all."

The day grew colder by the second, making me shiver. My father, who still held me in his arms, noted this and started for what he thought was the door, just as the clouds opened up, a light drizzle starting. We rushed inside before it started pouring.

Once inside we sat or stood in Nelly's living room.

"Roy, it's good to see you again. How ya feelin'?" Nelly asked my father.

He smiled pleasantly before answering, "I'm doin' just fine, Nelly."

"That's good to here," She smiled.

Ed had sat down on the couch, arms folded. Alphonse stood against the wall and stared at the ground. My father sat on a woven chair next to the couch, his face neutral. I stood behind him and Rin stood across from his father

"Why did you follow us?" Rin asked, clearly still angry.

Ed looked up at his son, just as angry now as Terrin was, "We had a bad feeling. We were worried."

I could almost see the sparks flying between them.

"Why?" Terrin asked through gritted teeth.

"Do I not have the right to worry about my own son?" Ed asked, his voice working its way up into a shout.

I stepped closer to my father and took his hand. He 'looked' up at me, smiled slightly, before turning back in the direction of Rin's voice.

He was furious, and I didn't understand why. They were just worried about us, and honestly, I didn't mind having my father here.

Terrin threw his one good arm up in the air, losing his one crutch, "Do you not think I can handle myself? Do you not trust me?"

"Rin," Alphonse scolded, folding his arms over his chest.

"No, Uncle. I'm so sick of this! You never let me do anything! I can't even walk through town without a shadow!" Rin yelled, losing his balance.

In a flash his father was behind him, his hand on Rin's back to hold him steady as he bent over to grab the crutch from the ground. Rin, his brow creased, grabbed the crutch angrily from his father as he limped off and up the stairs.

Ed sighed as he sat back down, his elbows on his knees and head in his hands. I looked down at my father and he nodded, knowing what I was going to do.

I walked up the stairs quickly and quietly, not really trying to be sneaky. The adults had started conversing amongst themselves as I walked into Rin's room.

"Just who does he think he is!?" Terrin shouted when he saw that I had followed him.

I shook my head and closed the door behind me, "Your father."

"Can't he trust me? Did he think I couldn't handle doing this?" He asked, sitting heavily on the edge of his bed. He ran his good hand through his hair in frustration, with a small wince that didn't go unnoticed.

Sitting next to him I took his hand gently in mine, "Terrin," I started, "…Rin…That's not what it's like at all."

He looked irritated that I'd side with his father, but he didn't pull his hand away and listened to what I had to say.

"Fathers are…over protective. Especially when their spouses aren't around to help out. They want to protect you, and keep you from harm. But they let you make mistakes and brush you off afterwards. Don't take this out on him, he doesn't mean any harm. Your father and my father are pretty similar." I told him.

Rin shrugged, staring down at his bandaged leg, which he had left slightly straightened in an effort to reduce pain, "Then couldn't he have just let me do this on my own?"

"You've made your mistake, and he's here to help you get back up." I insisted, leaning forward slightly to try and catch his beautiful eyes.

"I was kinda surprised when he caught me before I fell…" He mumbled avoiding my eyes for a moment before looking up to meet them.

I nodded, smiling, "See? Dads are just weird about how they help their children and are sometimes oblivious as to how you feel. My dad has done that a lot, but most of the time I end up glad he came."

He nodded and I could tell he wasn't really taking me seriously. With a sigh, I tried a new tactic.

"Remember when I told you about how I had almost been assaulted?" I asked. I waited until he nodded. "Well, I was embarrassed at first when my father showed up to help. I had wanted to do it myself, but I'd been too scared to do anything. So even though I was embarrassed that he'd come to help, I was glad he did."

I could see something click inside his mind," Oh…" He whispered," I get it now."

He smiled and grabbed his crutch, "I'm gonna go down stairs. Wanna join?"

I nodded and followed him back down the stairs.

To my surprise, I found Rin standing off to the side in order to stay out of sight of the living room. He glanced back at me, lifting his good hand to press a finger to his lips, before reaching out to pull me next to him.

I shot him a questioning glance, before following his gaze outside of the hallway to our fathers.

"Damn it!" Ed's voice rang out, sounding frustrated. "Why is it that I always say the wrong things!"

"Ed," Al's voice tried to reason, but was cut off by Ed.

"No, Al! I mess up when it comes to him!" Ed's voice was surprisingly thick, "I can't help but think that he would have done so much better growing up with his mother. I'm a terrible father…I deserve to have Terrin yell at me like that."

"Ed," My father's voice was sharp. "That is not true! It may have been a good thing that he had lived with his mother, but that's not a choice we had! I know for a fact that Pace would have done so much better with a parent who could actually see, but do you see me complaining? No! I've felt more and more useless as my baby girl gets older, and hate the fact that I can't see how beautiful I know she's becoming! I hate that I can't watch those sunrises she loves so much with her! But I can tell that she's strong, and I understand that she can handle herself out here, but I can't help worrying. I worry for her even though at this point she would do so much better than I could! And Terrin is a good lad, and I know that he has a good head on his shoulders, even though he was raised by just the two of you! It's hard…I know…I've spent many nights alone wishing that I could have Riza with me, but we all know that that'll probably never happen again."

"R-Roy…" Ed sounded just as surprised as I had felt.

"And Ed," My fahter's voice was softer now, gentler. "You're 38 now, and you understand that when you were younger you were a rash boy who didn't know how to stop and think! Some things are best learned through personal experience. I know for a fact that because of what Hohenheim did to you two when you were children that you'd never let Terrin have that same experience, and it may have led you to being a bit overbearing, but that's not exactly a bad thing."

"….Thanks…Roy," Ed's voice was rather thick with emotion, as I glanced up at Terrin, who's face was tight.

"Let's give them some time," I smiled up at him softly, lacing my hand through his momentarily, before moving to go back upstairs, followed by Rin.

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><p>Sometime later we sat around Nelly's dining room table. It was kind of crammed, but we made it work. The adults started talking about how they'd been and what they'd been doing for the past 20 years, leaving me and Rin to ourselves.<p>

"Are you going to apologize?" I asked him quietly.

"Eventually," Rin responded, his eyes telling me that he was still thinking of the conversation that we had overheard.

Nelly started talking about the time when they'd helped my father and mother, which kind of interested me, so I started paying attention.

"It was after I'd gone blind," My father started.

"But before alchemists were relocated, right?" Alphonse asked.

I thought it was strange how adults told stories in parts. Taking turns in the telling of the story.

"I had been with Scar on a mission. We'd gone out for a walk, discussing how we'd help rebuild the Ishbalan people." My father continued the telling of this parted story.

"You got ambushed, right?" Ed asked, folding his hands underneath his chin.

My father nodded, "Yes, then we were ambushed. A group of rouge alchemists who had grudges against me for the Ishbalan War."

"Even though you were trying to help them rebuild?" I asked, appalled that people would do such a heinous thing.

Roy turned his head in the direction of my voice, "Even though I was trying to help them rebuild. They caught us by surprise and attacked me. Unfortunately, I couldn't use my alchemy at the time because Scar and I hadn't had much time to get used to fighting together. Not long after they jumped us I was caught in the shoulder, where they stabbed me with what I think was a metal pipe in my left shoulder. It was because of that that they were able to break my leg, before getting attacked by Scar."

"Scar brought him to us, asking us to heal him as he went to find Riza," Nelly continued, "Mr. McAnderson had never seen or dealt with such injuries before and was surprised by the multiple number of scars that decorated Roy. He knocked him out to get the iron rod out of his shoulder and set his leg."

Terrin listened attentively, looking just like his father.

"When I woke up Riza was next to me and I was in such terrible pain," My dad added, "she was so worried about me. I felt bad that she had to worry so much."

"She had never left his side," Nelly whispered, shaking her head, a small smile on her face. "Just like how Pace didn't leave Terrin's side once she got there."

At that I blushed and looked down at my lap, wishing someone would change the subject. I could feel Terrin look at me, and my father's sightless eyes on me, making me blush harder. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ed and Al smiled.

The door opened, much to my relief, and Mr. McAnderson walked in. He blinked at the people around his table, then smiled when his eyes fell on my dad.

"Ah! Roy," He exclaimed," How ya been? What brings ya here?"

My father stood, extending his hand for a handshake, "I've been well, Graham! Just here with my kiddo to see her mother."

Mr. McAnderson shook my dad's hand heartily, along with Ed and Al's hands. Introductions were made, relationships recognized and dinner was served.

It was a hearty meal of chicken and noodle soup with slices of bread on the side and glasses of milk, which got glared at by Ed and welcomed by Rin. My father was most amused at Rin's love of milk and his father's hatred of the drink.

"So, Ed! Seems like your son here loves milk!" My father chuckled.

Ed glared at him, "Shut your mouth Colonel."

"Can't an old man point out differences between an old friend and his son, Fullmetal?" Roy laughed harder at this, finding his use of the word fiend hilarious.

Alphonse and Rin were snickering off to the side but when Ed glanced their way, the snickers stopped.

A light feeling filled the dining room as seconds were served.

As our eating slowed, and the conversations started more, I thought of something that had occurred to me on the train.

"Daddy?" I asked quietly, drawing his attention to me. "So I thought of something."

"Hmm? What might that be baby girl?" He asked, tilting his head to me slightly.

"So when I was learning about alchemy you told me that only those who had committed the taboo have seen the Gate." I started, blushing slightly when I noticed that I had the entire table concentrated on me. "B-but when even though I haven't seen the gate, I can use prayer alchemy, and as far as I know so can Rin, and he hasn't seen the gate either."

My dad hummed softly, a thoughtful look on his face, "That's interesting…Rin can use prayer alchemy?"

Rin nodded, but quickly realized my father couldn't see it and said, "Yes, sir."

Ed and Al also had thoughtful looks, before Al spoke, "Do you think it could be because Roy and Ed have seen the gate?"

Ed stared at Al for a long moment before slowly nodding, "You know, that makes sense, it's not like this is an often enough occurrence that we could research it though."

I nodded, still thinking when Nelly spoke up, "You know Ed, I've been wondering, when the war ended there were a lot of rumors that you lost your alchemy…is it true?"

This caused Ed to look at her surprised, before smiling sadly, "Ah, that's just a rumor, I still have my Alchemy."

"Really?" Mr. McAnderson asked, looking surprised.

"Yeah," Ed now had a sad look in his eye. "You see when we were standing there in the end, my father, Van Hohenheim offered to use…the stone he…had…in order to save Al,"

"Oh," Nelly gasped slightly. "I heard that you had refused that offer."

"Damn, is nothing secret anymore?" Ed groaned, before nodding, "I did at first, but when he realized that I was planning on sacrificing my gate and becoming a normal person, he insisted that I used his stone."

"You know," My dad spoke up. "That's where where you two get your stubbornness from…that man."

This caused the tension to snap away, as Al, Nelly, and Mr. McAnderson laughed, and Ed yelled at my dad.

Soon the conversation split up when Mr. McAnderson and my father talked about the old days with Ed and Al, leaving Nelly, Rin, and I to talk amongst ourselves.

"You kids get enough to eat?" Nelly had asked us.

"Yes Ma'am!" We replied, stuffing bread into our mouths and washing it down with some milk.

Eventually Nelly too joined in with the grown-ups, laughing and talking about days we wouldn't remember. Rin and I sat awkwardly at first, then decided that we'd go outside for some fresh air, but mostly to get away from the noise.

"Do you think we'll talk that loud when we get together with people when we get older?" Rin asked as we sat down.

I laughed, "I hope not."

"I feel like they were just yelling at each other. It was kinda obnoxious."

"Yes, it was."

With that, we were quiet. Listening to the wind ruffle the trees in the night breeze. The back door opened again, but neither of us looked to see who it was.

"Mind if I join you?" I heard Ed say.

At his father's voice Rin stiffened, but nodded I could tell that he was thinking back at what we had overheard earlier. Ed sat between us on the bench fiddling his thumbs.

After a moment of silence Ed whispered, "Listen, Rin…I want to apologize."

Rin shook his head, "No, you don't have too."

"But really," Ed insisted, "I didn't realize how unfairly I'd been treating you. I should have let you have more freedom."

Rin's usually composed face was filled with shock, "You were just trying to protect me…"

Ed nodded, "Yes, I was. But before I realized it you were getting older and it got harder for me to keep track of you. It scared me. But now I see that it's time I let you go. Not completely by yourself, heavens no! I'll still be there, just as a supporter rather than a protector."

The smile on Rin's face said it all, "Thanks Dad."

With that they hugged. Ed being careful of Rin's slung arm, and Rin laying his head on his father's shoulder. It was a touching moment.

Soon they pulled away and we fell into a comfortable silence, as we watched the sun slowly dip below the horizon.

Not long after the sun sank halfway the door opened again, and my dad walked out, cane in hand. I quickly stood and took his hand, pulling him to another bench across from where Rin and Ed sat.

After a moment of silence, Ed and Rin stood, walking back inside to let us have our privacy.

"I'm glad you're here, daddy," I said, pulling up my knees and grasping his hands into mine. "And…I've never thought you were useless…" I trailed off, feeling his hands tighten slightly around mine.

"So you heard that," he sighed, his head down.

I looked at him, just now noticing that he was starting to look older. His dark ebony hair was streaked with gray, and he had more lines around his face than I remembered. He also had dark bags under his silver eyes.

"Yeah," I squeezed his hands gently. "I know that you aren't able to watch a sunrise but you would still get up at the crack of dawn just to sit with me, no matter what. And that means so much, because it would be so easy for you to say no and sleep in, but every time you would get up at sit with me…and I don't mind that you worry for me! You're my dad, I would be sad if you didn't worry about me, I don't know what I would do without you, daddy. And I'm going to try everything within my power to make it so you can be with mom."

"Thank you, Pace," My dad said softly, gently tugging me forward into a hug. "I love you, baby girl.

* * *

><p>A few days after our fathers had shown up, Terrin's leg was finally healed enough for him walk on it without the crutch, much to his relief.<p>

Unfortunately, his shoulder wound wasn't healing as quickly, so he had to keep it in a sling, something that he was okay with as long as he didn't have to use those stupid crutches, he had told me after Mr. McAnderson left the room.

Currently, Ed, Rin and I were sitting in the back, where Ed was giving me a lesson on Alkahestry, something that he had been teaching me during the past couple days.

Suddenly our lesson was cut short, as soldiers barged roughly through the back door, Alphonse and my father already cuffed. Mr. McAnderson and Nelly came out after all the soldiers, their faces full of sorrow.

"Found you!" One of the soldiers snarled, "Put your hands in the air!"

I immediately pushed my hands into the air, aware of the guns pointed in our direction and at Alphonse and my father. Ed followed and Rin put up his good arm. The cuffs had longer chains, allowing for easy clapping, I noted mentally.

With our hands in the air the flock of soldiers lowered their guns and three came to cuff us. They were rough, pulling my arms back sharply and cuffing them too tightly. The soldier in charge of cuffing Rin seemed confused so he ended up chaining his one god arm to his belt loop.

They shoved us back through the house by gun point, pushing us with the barrels. When we got through the front door there were, surprise, more soldiers.

"Hurry up and get 'em in the cars!" A soldier shouted.

I looked at my father who was making a snapping motion with his fingers. Ed was clapping his hands behind me. Alphonse walked up next to me, stumbling in order to get close to me.

"We gotta get a chance for you and Rin to get away. I'll build a wall and you'll burn these cuffs off, yes?" He whispered, just loud enough for me to hear.

"That'll burn us, won't it?" I asked, knowing these cuffs were metal.

"Not if you're careful and only burn the center link," He remarked, moving in front of me, "Do yours first."

I nodded, concentrating hard on the middle link of my cuffs as I snapped. I heard the sizzle of melting metal and I was able to move my arms apart. Moving on to Alphonse I concentrated on his middle link, snapping and melting that one link only.

Alphonse nodded, smiling broadly, "You've been taught well. Now go help Ed and your father, quickly now. I'll distract these soldiers."

Al's attention moved away from me and to the soldier's cars. He clapped once and shoved his hands to the ground. At once, large pillars of rock shot up, shooting the cars into the air and away from the area. But I couldn't watch him, I had a job to do.

"Dad, use your alchemy and melt through the center link of your cuffs." I whispered as I passed him.

I didn't get to see him respond, but went to Ed, "I'm going to melt your center link, hold still."

By this time, it was easy and I got it done in no time, "Quick, help Terrin and get out of here," Ed muttered quietly as I snapped, sizzling the middle link away.

"But–" I started to protest, but he shot me a stern look

"Just go, we can handle ourselves," Ed grunted, pulling his hands apart and jumping forward to my dad. He had already separated his cuffs and that left Rin. There was a shout from behind me as Alphonse struggled against the soldiers.

My father joined the fight, clapping and snapping with Ed telling him what to do. They were attracting all of the attention.

"Rin! Com'on!" I shouted, starting to run past him, melting his middle link as I did so.

He looked at his father and uncle, "Are you sure we should leave? I mean…shouldn't we help?"

"Ed said so! Now let's get going!" I ordered.

"Fine, fine," He sighed.

I know he felt like he was running away, but we didn't have a choice. They were doing this so that we could escape.

We ran as fast as we could with Rin's leg still hurting him. I knew it wasn't fast enough though. Glancing back I noted that Rin's face was pinched tight, telling me that his leg was killing him, as he started to limp slightly.

I could hear the soldiers behind us.

"After them!" They shouted," Don't let them get away!"

We took a sharp left and spotted a little shack that bended in perfectly. There's no way they would suspect we went there.

I could hear the stomp of the soldier's boots as I shouted to Rin," Come on! In here!"

Rin nodded and I opened the door. It was dark inside. The windows were covered with dust and the door creaked as I closed it once again. There were a couple of boxes piled up on each other, tall enough to hide two teenage kids.

"Over here," I whispered, pulling on Rin's shirt lightly.

I winced slightly when he stumbled, his limp more prominent.

We crouched behind the racks of clothes, praying that the soldiers would just run past and not find us. Our breathing was fast as we pushed ourselves closer to each other to minimize the space we were taking up. Gently Rin's good arm wrapped around me, pulling me onto his chest, as we curled into each other. Time passed slowly, and eventually we fell asleep against each other.

* * *

><p><strong>OK! Please don't hurt us!<strong>

**{Damn…we're going to get killed….} Don't worry…I'll protect you Silv…**

**{Lots o' questions have finally been answered!} And even more to be asked!**

**Now, please! REVIEW! **

**{Quote time! This one is from a book!} A book that I just finished…**

** "Man, you weigh a freaking ton," he told me. "What've you been eating, rocks?" **

**"Why, is your head missing some?" I croaked. His mouth almost quirked in a smile, and that's when I knew how upset he'd been**


	9. Chapter 9

**{First off, I want to apologize for the longer wait, because in truth, it is my fault…life got rather hard for me, and still is, so finding time for the rather lengthy editing proses that I go through was not possible. And I know that Saki-chan can't delete this, because I'm the one that posts, and can add it before I post, so HA!} For the record, I don't blame her!**

**Thanks to Everyone who has taken time to stick with us for this long! This is our longest chapter yet!**

**{A special thanks to Practice4morale for her amazing fan art!}**

**Review Responses:**

**Mixmax300: {Thanks for your review! It definitely made me laugh when I really needed it : ) even more questions should be answered this chapter! Also, I forgot to mention this last chapter, but OMG! I'm a flute player too! I'm one of two section leaders! XD} I love the energy you have when you review, it's inspiring. **

**Practice4morale: {My prayers that you feel better. And thank you for your AMAZING fan art! It's the first time that I've ever had that happen, so it makes me very happy! (It made me smile so big my family thought I was weirder than usual) XD} You've always been weird Silv. ;) We both pray for you! Lovin' the art!**

* * *

><p>"Hey," A voice gruff voice woke me, "Come on, wake up!"<p>

Blinking I looked up to find a man with straw colored hair and a scruffy beard to match. The man leaned heavily on his cane, even though he only looked a little older than my dad. I was surprised to find myself curled up on Rin's lap, my head resting on his broad chest while his good arm wrapped firmly around my back. As I blink up at his smooth and relaxed face, I inhaled his unique smell, and pulled away out of his lap, before gently shaking him awake.

"Come with me," The man whispered, once we were both aware, gesturing to the back to the store.

We followed him through a little back door that led into a large room with many crates.

"Who are you?" Rin asked, awake enough to ask questions.

"Jean, Jean Havoc. This is my shop," He announced proudly.

"As in Lieutenant Havoc?" I asked, cutting off Rin as I remembered an old picture of my dad and his team.

He blinked, surprised, "No one's called me that in a long time…how'd ya know about that title?"

"My dad has a picture," I told him, watching as he limped across the room to sit heavily on a large crate.

"You're dad?" He asked, tilting his head to the side and giving me a steady stare.

I nodded and opened my mouth to say more, but this time Rin cut me off.

"Why haven't you kicked us out yet?" He demanded, his golden eyes narrowed.

Havoc stared at him for a moment before answering, "Because I'd know those eyes anywhere."

Rin blinked in confusion as Havoc continued, "You look just like your father when he was younger. But, I can still see the traces of your mother in your features."

"Y-you know my mother?" Rin's eyes seemed to brighten.

Havoc nodded before turning his blue eyes to me, "And if I were to guess I also know your mother."

I blinked, surprised, "How do you know?"

"You look just like her," Havoc said, continuing to stare at me, "Except for your hair. Which you have clearly taken from your father."

I had started to shake, like someone who hadn't eaten in days, "I look like my mother…?"

Havoc nodded," I still see them every few weeks. In fact, I should be seeing them and your sister today."

Rin looked startled, "M-my sister?"

Havoc nodded again, "She looks just like her mother. Just as you look just like your father."

"I want to meet them," Rin sighed, "But that would only get them into trouble."

I thought for a moment, an idea forming quickly in my head," What if…what if we could change what we look like?"

Havoc and Rin looked at me like I was crazy, "What?"

"Well," I explained, "The soldiers only have vague ideas about how we look. For example, our hair color."

I could see the gears turning in Rin's mind, "My father's journal!"

"What about it?" Havoc asked as Rin pulled the old travel book out.

"It's a good thing you always keep that on you," I commented, as I pulled out a pen and scrap of paper.

"It has recipes in it," Rin said, listing off various ingredients form a page, "One and one fourth cups of butter, two cups of white sugar, two eggs, two teaspoons of vanilla extract, two cups of all-purpose flour, three fourths of a cup of unsweetened cocoa powder, one teaspoon of baking soda, one half a teaspoon of salt, two cups of semisweet chocolate chips." **(*)**

As he read off the ingredients, I quickly decoded them into the ingredients that we actually needed, scribbling them quickly. During our time at Nelly's I had learned that Rin was able to crack his fathers rumored unbreakable code when he was about seven – something that drove his uncle up the wall – and that we both knew the 'recipe code' that Dr. Marcoh had used.

When I had finished recoding the notes, I handed the scrap of paper to Havoc," Do you have these things and a bowl?"

After scanning the page, he nodded, standing and limping to various spots in the shop and pulling things off the shelves.

Handing them to us with a measuring cup we started to measure them out. Soon, we had a bowl of black dye that Rin dipped the ends of his hair into. Rin clapped his hands, triggering the transmutation that would turn his blond hair black.

Moments later Rin had deep ebony colored hair, like my dad's and my own. Quickly, Rin pulled his hair out of the higher ponytail that it had been in and tied it loose and low, while I pulled my hair into a messy bun.

Now, all that was left was the problem that our clothes would be easily recognized.

So, with the help of Havoc who pulled out a couple of blankets, we transmutated new clothes. I took mine behind a pile of creates to change.

"Jean! The store's going to open soon! Where are you?" A female voice called out.

"Alright! I'm coming!" He called back before standing, "When you two are finished changing come help me in the store."

Rin and I nodded as he left. After changing into my new overalls and t-shirt I peeked out from behind the crates, praying that Rin was finished too.

"Rin?" I asked cautiously, ready to dart back behind the crates if he was still changing. "Are you done?"

There was a pause, followed by a sigh and 'tsking' sound from where he was slightly hidden, "Pretty much…but I kinda need your help."

My curiosity peeked, I slowly moved out from behind the crates, feeling my face flush with the sight I was met with.

Standing in front of me was Rin, who was also slightly blushing as he held his new shirt in hand, "I can't get this on…"

As I stepped closer to him, I felt my eyes wandering over his bandaged upper chest and shoulder, only for my gaze to slide down to his defined abs. Somewhere in the back of my mind I felt the strong urge to run my hand over the tanned skin, but I squashed it down and forced myself to blink up at Rin's face. He was blushing just as brightly as I was, as he handed me his shirt, his other arm out of its sling.

Silently I helped him slip on his shirt, wincing in sympathy whenever Rin's face tightened in pain when he moved his shoulder too much. After we got the shirt on I transmutated a sling out of the remaining cloth and helped him into it, despite his disgruntled look.

Finally, we were both completely dressed, and Rin stepped away, looking around at the crates, almost as if they were something suspicious.

"What kind of shop do you think he's running here?" Rin asked, a suspicious tone in his voice.

"I'm sure it's just a general store," I suggested, not sure why he was so suspicious.

Rin nodded, still looking at the crates. I sat down on one of the smaller ones, my knees coming up to my chest. As I hugged my knees I watched Rin walk around the crates.

"What do you suppose are in these?" He asked, trying take the lid off of one of them.

I shrugged," If we go out into the shop and help him like he asked we might find out."

Rin looked startled at the statement. As if I had been sharp with him or something. I hadn't meant it to sound mean, I just wanted to point it out.

"Yea, you're right," He muttered, sounding hurt," Come on."

I sighed before pushing myself to my feet," Wait, Rin."

He stopped before the door, turning to look back at me.

"I didn't mean to sound sharp with you…I'm sorry," I mumbled, looking down at the floor.

Rin walked over to where I stood and, after a moment of hesitation, reached up to gently brushed his hand along my cheek, "Don't worry about it. I was just startled is all."

I looked down, feeling the blood rush to my face at his soft touch, "O-okay…"

Suddenly, I felt Rin take a small step closer, and before I could step away, felt him gently press his lips to my forehead.

I allowed myself a long moment to bask in the glow, before I stepped back and smiled up at him, gesturing to the door, "We gonna go?"

"Sure," He smirked.

Pushing through the door we found Havoc sitting in a chair behind a long glass counter holding a small variety of guns and bullets. The rest of his shop was tidy with shelves of food and other various items. Racks of clothes stood nearest to the counter and shelves of shoes were closest to the door. There were blankets, writing utensils, and paper on shelves on the far wall.

"Told you it was a general store," I whispered in Rin's ear, snaking my hand into his and feeling him chuckle softly in response.

Havoc looked up from the counter, "Ah! There you are!" He spoke loudly as he stood, still leaning heavily on his cane when he wasn't sitting, "Could you help me bring in some supplies from those crates? My wife will help direct you."

"Your wife?" Rin and I asked simultaneously.

As if on cue a woman with long curly brown hair and gorgeous brown eyes appeared from behind a rack of clothes.

"Who are these kids?" She asked, her boobs bouncing slightly as she walked.

"They're a friend of mine's kids from back when I was in the military," Havoc explained to his wife.

She took a closer look at me, "You look familiar…do I know you?"

My eyes widened and I looked from her to Havoc and back.

"Hun, come here a second please," Havoc said, pulling her to the side.

They talked in hushed voices. Rin looked worried and I was just trying to put a name to her face. I'd seen her before, also in the picture my dad had of his old days in the military. She stood next to my mother.

"Do you know her?" Rin asked, his eyes concerned that we might be in trouble.

I nodded, "Her name starts with an R…Rose? No…no…that's not it."

Rin looked less concerned about the situation now and I could finally remember her name. Rebecca. Her name was Rebecca!

"No!" I heard Rebecca say, "You're Riza's daughter?! I never would have guessed!"

"Well they are wearing disguises," Havoc whispered to her.

Rebecca shook her head, "She looks just like her mother...minus the hair. That'd be her father's. And you young man!" She said, turning to Rin who looked startled," Look just like your father."

The door to their little shop opened suddenly and in walked two soldiers. My heart raced as looked over at Rin who looked equally as startled as I was.

"Can I help you?" Havoc asked calmly.

One of the soldiers looked around the little shop as the other stared at Havoc. His crisp green uniforms and the way the other soldier stood behind him told me he held the higher rank of the two.

"Sir, have you seen two suspicious teenagers around the age of seventeen? They're considered highly dangerous alchemists and are wanted by the state," The first soldier said, his voice rough.

"Alchemists? Damn! I'll keep my eyes peeled!" Havoc responded, sounding shocked and slightly afraid.

The first soldier was looking at me and Rin as the second one spoke up," Sir, we advise you not to approach them. Just report if you see anything suspicious."

"Yes sir!" Havoc exclaimed, his voice rather cheery as he sent them a relaxed salute," Y'all have a good mornin'."

There were a few awkward moments of silence before the soldiers left the store, allowing Rin and I to breathe again.

Rebecca wasted no time, however, and got us right to work. We brought in items from the back and put them on the shelves for a couple hours. Then, it was lunch time.

"Let's eat!" Havoc shouted at us before we brought in more shirts.

Rin and I grinned. Our tummy's had been growling for about an hour and we were ready to eat.

"What's for lunch?" Rebecca asked, going to stand next to her husband.

"I was thinking….sandwiches!" Havoc declared, throwing his arms around Rebecca.

Rin looked utterly confused, "What are sandwiches?"

"You've never had a sandwich?" Rebecca asked, appalled at the idea that we hadn't had this food.

I shook my head, "In Pisu we generally have soup or raw things."

"No…" She gasped, "What's wrong with people!"

We shrugged as Havoc pulled out a loaf of bread and thought a moment, "Neither of you are vegetarians, right?"

"Um…no," Rin answered, looking at me as I shook my head.

Still confused we watched as they constructed a 'sandwich' with thin layers of cheese, meat, and various vegetables. Before long we sat around the long counter with plates of this cut up pile of things.

"Eat up!" Havoc insisted, grabbing his own sandwich and biting into it.

Rebecca quickly followed her husband and tore into her's, encouraging me to bite into mine. The thing was hard to hold, but it was delicious.

"Oh, Rin!" I mumbled, my mouth full of food," You have to try this!"

He brought the sandwich to his mouth tentatively, smelling first before taking a bite. His eyes lit up and he took another, much larger, bite. This caused Havoc and Rebecca to smile, continuing to eat.

After we'd finished the sandwich a few costumers wandered in, bought a few things, and left again.

I wandered around the shop, looking at the floor, thinking about my father. Rin was sitting with Havoc at the counter and Rebecca stood behind Havoc.

"What ya thinkin' about kiddo?" Havoc called to me.

Looking up at him I debated telling him it was nothing, but decided against it, "My father."

"What about him?" Rebecca asked as I walked over to the counter again.

"I was just wondering why he was still blind. Didn't he have many chances to heal them?" I thought out loud.

Havoc looked down at his hands and Rebecca had a sad look in her eyes.

"Y-you guys know something!" I almost shouted.

They nodded, and Rin was looking for them to me in confusion.

"Please tell me," I pleaded.

"It happened years ago," Havoc started," After your father was offered a Philosophers Stone."

* * *

><p><em>Havoc sighed as he lifted himself off of the wooden train bench and onto his chair, lifting his duffle bag into his lap.<em>

_The day before he had been receiving calls as usual when he had gotten the call from Brenda, demanding that he took the next train to Central without so much as a hint of why._

_A flick of his arms and he was rolling out of the compartment, and to the door of the train, where a worker had pulled out a ramp, allowing a smooth exit from the train. Havoc nodded absentmindedly to the worker, keeping a steady pressure on his wheels to keep from taking off down the ramp, as his eyes scanned the crowds for a familiar face. _

_"Havoc! Jean!" _

_Havoc turned to his left to see the happy face of Rebecca bouncing through the crowd, Brenda struggling to keep up behind. _

_"Rebecca!" he exclaimed, flicking his wrist to face her, as she came skidding to a stop, her large breasts bouncing._

_"How are you?" she asked, grinning as she leaned over to hug him tightly._

_"Okay," He grunted, leaning forward to make the hug a little easier. "Better when I find out why you guys want me out here so badly."_

_"You'll see in a bit," Brenda grunted, going behind Havoc to grab the handles of his chair and started to push him out of the station. _

_"Well it's nice to see you too," Havoc pouted slightly, as he crossed his arms over his chest._

_Brenda chuckled as they found themselves standing in front of a black car, which had another familiar face in the driver's seat, Kain Fuery. _

_A short car ride later they were outside the military hospital, causing Havoc to glance over at Brenda with a raised eyebrow, "Surly you haven't demanded I come here just for a visit…" _

_Brenda snorted in response, as he jumped out and ran to open Havoc's chair outside his door, "Nah, like I said, you'll find out in a bit." _

_After carefully pulling himself down into his chair, Havoc continued to pout, grunting as Brenda pushed a pile of books onto his lap. _

_Again Brenda took hold of the handles on his chair, smoothly maneuvering the chair up the ramp, while Fuery carried his duffle bag up the stairs and Rebecca walked behind them. _

"Ishval, Prayers from Dusk to Dawn, Celebrations and Gatherings of the Ishvalan people, Ishbala: God of All Creation," _Havoc read out loud a couple of the book covers as they entered the hospital, noting in the back of his mind how the nurse had just nodded to Brenda in greeting. "What are these for?"_

_Brenda glanced down, at him, as Havoc ruffled through the books, flicking to the marked pages and scanning them, "Well, we've started a bit of a project."_

_Havoc glanced up in confusion, only to bring his attention to in front of him, as they came to a stop in front of a familiar face, who blinked down and Havoc, before smiling and saluting, "2__nd__ Lt. Havoc!" _

_Havoc waved away the title, "You know I'm retired now, 2__nd__ Lt. Ross."_

_She blushed slightly, nodding her head in apology, "Sorry, old habits die hard, they say! Anyway, they're waiting for you, so head on in!"_

_Havoc nodded thanks as Ross held the door open for Brenda to push him through, only to feel his jaw drop, at the sight that met him. _

_While he was aware that the Colonel had lost his eyesight, the dirty blond had expected a quiet rather depressed hospital room, not Colonel sitting leaning against the backboard of his bed with his arms crossed over his chest. Falman was currently quizzing him on some of the specific details about the nightly rituals of the Ishvalan people._

_Mustang, who had been in mid answer paused, his head tilting slightly, "Havoc?"_

_Havoc blinked in surprise, "How'd–" _

_"No one else smells like an ashtray," Mustang said bluntly, turning his head to look in Havoc's direction, letting him see that his once dark eyes were now unfocused gray slates._

_Havoc pouted slightly as he rolled forward to park in between Mustang and Hawkeye's beds, "Gee, thanks…"_

_"That, and you're right wheel squeaks," Mustang grinned slightly, unfolding his arms and holding his hand out – which Havoc noticed was tightly bandaged – for him to shake._

_Havoc gently grabbed Mustang's hand, not wanting to irritate the wound, "Great, I've been trying to fix it, but I just can't get it to stop."_

_Mustang nodded, pulling his hand back to rest in his lap, "Now, I'm guessing you're wondering why we've had you come here so urgently."_

_Havoc nodded vigorously, just as the door opened, and a man with a badly scarred face walked in._

_"Doctor Marcoh! Just in time!" Mustang exclaimed, as the man came to a stop at the foot of the bed. _

_"Doctor Marcoh?" Havoc asked. "Weren't you the one who had the…?"_

_Havoc trailed off as said doctor nodded, "Yes, I worked with the Philosophers Stone." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a blood read crystal. "In fact, I have one right here, which is why you're here." _

_Havoc felt his jaw drop again, "What?"_

_Marcoh nodded, holding up his crystal, "Yesterday I came to Colonel Mustang here with an offer…an offer to use this Philosopher's Stone to bring back his eyesight."_

_Havoc swallowed thickly, "A-and what does this have to do with me?"_

_Mustang chose this moment to speak, "I agreed to use the stone after one thing, and that is to heal your spinal cord."_

_Havoc was shocked, to say the least, he'd be able to walk again?! _

_"Y-you're joking…" He was able to choke out, his eyes wide._

_Both Mustang and Marcoh shook their hands, and Brenda smacked Havoc on the shoulder, "If all goes well, with time, you'll be walking again."_

_"If everything goes as planned, we'll be having the surgery – for lack of better term – in five days," Doctor Marcoh told them. _

_Two hours later, Havoc was wheeling himself out of the hospital room in a daze, his mind whirling. They had just finished planning out what was to come within the next few days, including a couple of physicals, and a thorough explanation of what would be happening during the procedure. _

_Still immersed in his thoughts, Havoc was surprised to hear a younger voice call his name, "Lt. Havoc?"_

_Standing in front of him was Edward Elric, who was looking at him in surprise, a cup of steaming coffee in hand. _

_"Chief ?" Havoc asked, pushing his thoughts away. "What are you doing here?"_

_"I'm staying here with Al," Ed grinned, as Havoc wheeled himself closer. _

_"Al?" Havoc asked, confused. "What about Al?"_

_"Didn't you hear?" Ed asked, raising an eyebrow. _

_"Hear what?" Havoc tilted his head._

_Ed didn't answer, but turned to face Havoc completely, allowing him to see his right _human_ arm. _

_"Ed!" Havoc exclaimed, a rush of happiness filling him. "And that means Al?"_

_Ed nodded, smiling broadly, "Yeah."_

_"That's amazing!" Havoc laughed, happy for his younger friend. Before his injury – and subsequently his retirement – Havoc had been rather close with the brothers, often taking an older brother roll to them when they were in the city. _

_"Would like to see him?" Ed asked eagerly._

_"Heck yeah!" Havoc smiled, pushing strongly with his arms to be next to Ed as he walked to the room. _

_"His body's really emaciated, because it spent so much time in the gate, so the nurses are keeping him here while he rehabilitates," Ed told him, as they turned the corner into the private wards. "Once he gets a bit more body mass on him, he'll start physical therapy, like I'm doing now for my arm."_

_Havoc nodded, realizing that if Al's body was emaciated, so would Ed's arm._

_Soon they came to a stop in front of a door, which the tag read _Alphones Elric.

_Just as Ed was going to open the door, it opened and a smiling Nurse walked out, "Hello Edward, how are you today?"_

_"I'm doing great! I ran into an old friend, who wants to visit Al for a bit," Ed grinned, as she passed him._

_"That's fine, just remember that he needs his rest," The nurse smiled down at Havoc who nodded politely. _

_"Will do!" Ed smiled, holding the door for Havoc._

_As he wheeled in, Havoc caught sight of a blond teen propped up in the bed. He was clearly extremely thin, from his boney cheeks and prominent collar bones. Dispite this he smiled brightly at Havoc, his familiar golden eyes glowing with life, "Lt. Havoc!" _

_"Alphones!" Havoc exclaimed, parking his chair next to the bed, "It's amazing to finally see _you_!" _

_Al smiled at the older man, "It's great to be back!" _

_"So, what're ya doing out here?" Ed asked, sitting down on a plastic chair on the other side of the bed. "I thought you were working for your family's store!"_

_Havoc nodded, "I was! Colonel called me here."_

_"For what?" Al asked, lifting a boney hand to brush at his long hair, which was loosely tied back. _

_"There's a chance that I'll be walking again," Havoc said, the words still bringing a coil of excitement through his chest. "They got their hands on a stone."_

_Much to Havoc's surprise, neither of the bothers looked surprised. _

_"You knew?" He asked, at their lack of reaction._

_They both nodded. "We went to visit the Colonel yesterday," Al explained, reading Havoc's confusion. "And he explained their plans."_

_"So…you're okay with this?" Havoc asked warily. "With us using the stone?"_

_Ed shrugged, "We have no qualms…it was just us using the stone that we were against…we don't really care that you guys are using them, especially if they are planning to use it to rebuild the Ishvalan people." _

_After he had left the brothers, time seemed to move extremely fast for Havoc, who seemed to get jumpier and jumpier. _

_Soon it was time for the procedure, and that found Havoc nervously fiddling with his hands, while Dr. Marcoh and Ed – who had offered to help – drew out the transmutation circle. _

_"Now, as we said before, all you have to do is lay on your front in the center of this circle, and relax. Oh, and you'll have to take off your shirt," Dr. Marcoh explained, as they finished the last touches of the circle. _

_"Take off my shirt?" Havoc asked, clearly confused._

_"Yes," Marcoh said, "If you don't there's a chance that it won't work."_

_Havoc nodded, taking off his shirt before Ed approached him to help Brenda lift him out of his chair, and into the circle. After a couple minuets struggling with his limp legs, Havoc was laying with the transmutation circle directly under his midsection. _

_"Let me know if you feel any pain," Marcoh told him, and Ed and Brenda backed away. _

_Havoc nodded, and allowed his eyes to slip closed, feeling Marcoh's fisted hand on his mid back._

_Flashes of red light flashed through Havoc's closed eyes, as Marcoh triggered the transmutation circle. _

_He felt a small amount of pain as he could feel his nerves reconnect. He felt excitement flood him at the thought of having his legs back. They had pins and needles in them, the kind you get from sitting with your legs crossed for too long. He smiled, knowing he would be able to walk again. _

_Suddenly, all of the feelings stopped as a large crack rang through the air. _

_Havoc opened his eyes, to see Marcoh staring down at his spine where the stone lay. He had felt it snap in half, intersecting with the crack that had formed seconds before. As he watched, the stone fell apart, slowly disintegrating into dust._

_By the time that the stone was completely disintegrated, the sensations that Havoc had been feeling seemed to catch up to him. Havoc could feel his eyes roll back in his head and his body go limp._

* * *

><p>"And when I woke next, I learned that there had only been enough souls within the stone to complete the procedure about three fourths of the way," Havoc sighed, his eyes distant. "Your father was sitting next to me, when Marcoh explained this…to my surprise; he wasn't nearly as upset that I was thinking he would be. It turns out that when I apologized to him he told me, and I quote, 'I knew from the start that there was that possibility of you using all of the stone, and while I'm sad that I'll still have to retire, I don't regret giving you the stone to fix your spinal cord.'"<p>

As he finished I felt a sense of pride in my father. Pride that he was able to put aside healing himself to heal one of his subordinates. It made me happy that he was willing to do that.

"In a way, your father saved me from a life of misery," Havoc said in a small whisper.

Rebecca was hugging Havoc from behind, her arms around his waist and her face in the crook of his neck. They were a cute couple and I was glad they were together.

It was now later than we thought. The world was falling into a peaceful silence as the sun started to fall. And yet, the sky was a bright orange, making the day still vibrant.

Suddenly, the door to the little shop opened, surprising everyone. They hadn't expected any more customers for the day, and were just about to lock up. But, as the people walked in, Havoc and Rebecca froze. There, stood two woman.

One, with long blond hair that was pulled back into a high pony tail with other long pieces hanging around her face and appearing to be in her late thirties. She had brilliant blue eyes and many piercings along her ears. She wore a plain white tank-top with some long cargo pants.

The second woman had shorter blond hair, it wasn't really short but rather not as long as the first woman's, with hazel eyes appearing to be in her late fourties. She wore a more formal outfit that consisted of a white blouse and a navy blue, knee length skirt.

I felt my heart stop.

* * *

><p><strong>Please don't hurt us….<strong>

**{If it calms anybody…we pretty much have the next three chapters mostly written, so the wait shouldn't be that long!}**

**(*) this is an actual recipe to make AMAZING cookies! Follow the link below (Without the spaces) for full instructions!**

** allrecipes recipe / chewy – chocolate - cookies-i/**

**{And A special shout out for Mixmax300 for guessing last week's quote from Maximum Ride!}**

**{So, we've come up with a little challenge for all you beautiful readers out there!} Yes that's right! A CHALLENGE! We want you guys to write a one-shot of one of Pace's and Roy's sunrises! {If anyone is interested, in taking up this little challenge, feel free to PM me! } Or let us know via a review! WRITE ON! **

**PLEASE! REVIEW!**

** Quote:**

** "I'm sorry, but I never lose to the same person twice."**


	10. Chapter 10

**{Hot chocolate?} Check!**

**{Panic! At the Disco?} Check? You like them? {Only a few songs that I can't get out of my head XD}**

**{Overflowing ideas?} Check and check**

**{Wow! This might just be a new record! Whoot!} **

**BUT be warned that there will defiantly be a slowdown of chapters soon, because one of the two of us starts Marching band on Monday {UGH! I kinda don't wanna…} while the other half will join her in two weeks! {I would like to deny that it will happen…but it will, because our director is a slave driver}**

**Thanks to EVERONE who has spent their time to read our little story! Thanks to you guys we've managed to hit DOUBLE DIGITS **

**Review Responses**

**Mixmax300: {Thanks again for your amazing review! They always manage to make me smile! And don't worry, work hard enough and you'll be able to make section leader! And I know what you mean…I'm going to die I'm so out of shape… T-T } As my amazing co-author stated, thanks for the review! I'm glad our little story gets you all excited! And sadly, I missed my chance to be section leader (even though Silv says I'm good enough), this is only my second year of marching band and I'm not exactly the most qualified to lead the Color Guard.**

* * *

><p>I knew who they were without having to be told. Since my father only had one picture of his whole team (which he kept in a little box underneath his bed) I had never seen her, but my father described her as the woman who stood next to his side. The woman who became his wife.<p>

Rin had frozen just as I had, his mouth agape and eyes wide.

Here, before us, stood our mothers.

Havoc smiled broadly, "Welcome, ladies!"

Riza smiled softly, but Winry didn't smile at all. There was something wrong…

Rebecca frowned, "Come here you two," She whispered softly as she walked by, opening the door to the back.

Once back there, she sat down on one of the crates, "So today is kinda a sad day for them…"

"Why?" Rin asked, clearly thinking how this specific day could be sad for both women.

"Well," Rebecca whispered, thinking hard, "Today's officially the twentieth anniversary of Ed, Al, and Roy being forced out of Central…"

"Oh…" Rin and I whispered.

"Honestly," She continued, "I'm not entirely sure how they'll feel to know you're here."

"We understand," Rin whispered, his voice shaking slightly.

Rebecca stood and left, closing the door behind her leaving Rin and I in a thick silence.

"D-do you think they'll recognize us?" I asked him quietly. Still unable to believe that they were here.

Rin shook his head, "I'm not entirely sure. I mean, you look exactly like your father…but I'm disguised…"

I heard just how much he longed for his mother to recognize him, just how badly he wanted her to know that he was here. And I realized just how badly I wanted my own mother to know me as well.

"Let's go out and see if they do…" I told Rin, heading for the door.

"Pace…" Rin muttered, grabbing my wrist, "What…what if they don't recognize us?"

I shrugged, "Then we'll have to make them see."

With that we entered the store once more and stood behind the counter with Havoc as Rebecca walked and talked with Riza.

I was so anxious, so…almost afraid, that they would or wouldn't recognize us. Rin was shifting from foot to foot, tying his now black hair into a ponytail in an attempt to look more like his father. His eyes were still golden, which we'd have to fix before we talked to President Maliki. Me, I hadn't changed. The chance that my mother recognized me was much higher than Rin's.

We watched them silently as they wandered around the store, picking up objects and placing them in a tiny basket half-heartedly.

I started fiddling my thumbs as time went on. It felt like hours had passed, but I knew it was only minutes. Occasionally Riza would look up and her eyes would fall on me, but she'd move on quickly. Every time she would do so my rose in anticipation, my body aching to hug her.

Mere minutes later they brought up their baskets and set them on the counter. Occasionally they would each look up at Rin and I, then look back down as Havoc added up their total.

"She looks like Mustang," I heard Winry whisper under her breath to Riza.

"And he looks like Ed," She muttered back, sighing.

And with that something clicked. Their eyes lit, and smiles spread across their faces.

"Terrin?" Winry mumbled, barely audible.

"Pace!" Riza exclaimed.

They were on us in seconds, hugging as we nodded at our names unable to say anything. I smiled widely, hugging my mother as she kissed my forehead and cheeks. I couldn't see Rin, but I knew he was smiling as well.

As they pulled away, their smiles disappeared.

"How'd you get here? Why are you here? Where are your fathers?" Their questions flew at us relentlessly.

I looked over at Rin and sent him my mind message of '_Do we tell them?'_ He nodded, understanding me.

Taking a deep breath I launched into a short version of our tale, "We came on a train originally without our dads and we came to see you guys and try to change Maliki. Our dads had come after us after we had a little run in with the military," I gestured to Rin's arm, "And then they found us and we had another trial with the military and we don't know where they are now…"

I felt like I'd just been rambling nervously, speaking too fast for them to comprehend me. Our mother's stared at me like I had been speaking another language.

"So…your dads are captured?" Winry asked, trying not to be worried.

Rin shook his head, "Not exactly. They probably made it out."

Riza laughed nervously, "That would explain all the extra military personnel around here."

Winry looked over at Havoc and Rebecca, "How long have they been here?"

"Since last night. They had managed to get in the shop before we closed up and slipped behind the boxes," Havoc responded after thinking a moment.

At that Riza snickered, "You've really lost your touch, Jean. You used to catch people who did that in mere moments."

Havoc frowned, "Aw Shut it, Riza."

Everyone laughed heartily with Havoc's hurt expression. Riza and Winry paid for their groceries and suggested we come with them. We agreed and told Havoc and Rebecca good bye and thanks for not selling us out to the military. And then we were gone, leaving somewhere normal with our mothers like normal kids do.

* * *

><p>Riza and Winry lived in the same apartment building and even on the same floor. It made me wonder if they'd planned this, or if it was just coincidental.<p>

Before Winry took Rin to her apartment we hugged good-bye, me being careful of his arm and him squeezing me tight.

"We'll talk in a bit, okay?" He whispered into my ear as he held me close.

"Yeah," I nodded, pulling away to smile up at him.

Riza opened her door and we walked in.

As we stepped through the door and into the apartment, a small bark caused me to look down at my feet.

Sitting on a small mat next to the door area was a small black dog, with a white muzzle and face. His underbelly and paws were also black. Something in the back of my mind supplied that it was a Shiba Inu.

"Hello, Kuroko!" Riza knelt down to gently nuzzle the small dog, who yapped softly, licking at her cheek. "He was one of the pups from my old dog Hayate." She added to me, as I knelt down to rub at his soft fur.

"You're sweet!" I exclaimed, as he nuzzled my face, his curly tail wagging happily.

Standing up strait I looked around the apartment I had just entered.

It was a cozy little thing with pretty minimal furniture including a couch with a coffee table. Her kitchen had a sink, a fairly long counter along the wall with a stove placed in the middle, and a dining table. On the floor there were a few rugs to make the hard wood softer, but the space was pretty bare. Upon further exploration I found that there were two rooms down a small hallway. Her room had one bed that was clearly too big for just one person, something I could see by the way that one half of the bed was made as the other half had crumpled sheets. It also held a little desk with a chair, a mirror, and a closet that had cloths of all sorts neatly hung on hangers or folded on shelves. The extra bedroom with basically the same furniture but the bed was smaller and the closet was bare.

* * *

><p>"So…" Riza said, as we entered the living room, "How have you been?"<p>

I smiled at her, knowing this must be awkward to finally see her only daughter who's seventeen and she had no idea what I liked or did or how I'd been for the past sixteen years.

"I've been good! I mean…the military here kinda sucks, but other than that it's been pretty good." I replied. "But I noticed something…you have brown eyes, and my dad had dark eyes. So, why do I have blue eyes?"

Riza blinked at me, her eyes drifting up to lock with my eyes, "Your grandmother."

"What?" I asked, confused.

Quickly, Riza went into her room, and returned with a photo album, "Sometimes gene's will skip generations…you have your grandmother's eyes."

Gesturing for me to sit down on the couch next to her, Riza flipped open the album to show me a picture of her when she was little with an older woman with eyes exactly like mine.

Continuing to flip through the pictures, I found myself looking at a picture of Riza standing next to my father. They were both young, standing next to each other in their old military uniforms. On the left was Riza, her hair cut in a short, boyish cut, while my dad was standing tall, his eyes focused and a dark onyx color.

"That was not long after the Ishvalan war," Riza commented, looking over my shoulder.

"You had short hair," I said, my fingers hovering over the picture.

"Yeah, it was easier to tame" Riza laughed.

A few pictures later had me laughing slightly at a photo of my dad, who was sprawled out on a couch, sound asleep with various puppies sleeping on him.

"That was during one of his trips here not long after he left," Riza's voice saddened, before looking at me. So, how is your dad?" She asked, clear worry in her voice.

"He's been fine," I told her, "It's been hard for him…to be without you. He talks about you all the time."

At that she blushed slightly, "How was living in Pisu?"

"Honestly…" I started, "Not that great. We were rationed since we are considered 'highly dangerous' and those rations would barely hold us for a week, but we had to make it last two. We had run down schools that the military would force us to go to. Ed was my teacher. Our houses are small and provide almost no warmth for winter and no cool in summer. But we made it work my dad and I."

She smiled softly, "Your dad was always one to make things work…" Then she frowned and got a little more serious, "How did you feel growing up with a blind man?"

I thought a moment, "Well…it was strange at first. He had our little house memorized and could walk around better than anyone who could see, but I was very confused when I met other people's dads and they weren't blind. And for a long time I didn't understand why not everyone was blind. But we made mistakes, and we learned. He was a good father even though he had that dilemma. To be honest, he's even a better cook than most people."

Her smile widened, "That's good. I was afraid he wouldn't be able to protect you like a man who could see would have. But I'm relieved to know that he did so well."

"He was fantastic father. He's more than a father…he's a best friend," I sighed, feeling my chest tighten as I remembered that he'd been fighting the military to help us escape just a couple days ago.

"Hey, Mom!" I called from the living room.

She came out of the kitchen, "Yes, dear?"

"Do you know why Rin and I were separated while in Pisu?" I asked her, looking down figuring she wouldn't know.

She nodded, "I do."

For moments it didn't look like she'd say anything else, but she continued, "When you two were little, probably about three or four years old, you were learning Alchemy together. They learned that Rin could do prayer alchemy there and they were surprised when a spike of the earth popped up. That spike of earth went into you, your side specifically, and they decided that they'd keep you guys apart until you could control your alchemy."

I looked down, pulling my shirt up to show the scar on my left side. I hadn't known what had caused that but it had been there ever since I could remember.

"You were so young you probably couldn't remember. But the injury was bad from what I hear," Riza told me, her hand on my shoulder, "They kept you apart for your safety."

* * *

><p>Rin walked into his mother's apartment, feeling anxious about what questions she'd ask him and wondering how he'd respond.<p>

"So…why is your hair black?" Winry asked him, shutting the door quietly as she set the keys down on a small table.

"I had to disguise myself or the soldiers would have recognized me…" Rin responded quickly.

She nodded and sat down on a light blue couch where Rin joined her. He could feel her sorrow as though it were something tangible and he didn't want to make it worse by saying anything wrong, so he just stayed quiet.

"I've missed you…so much Terrin," She whispered, staring in her lap.

"I've missed you too," He told her, more to reassure her than anything. It's not like he hadn't missed her, but it's hard to miss someone you've only seen pictures of. "And, if you don't mind, could you call me Rin? Dad only uses my full name when I'm in trouble."

She smiled a little, "Of course, and your sister should be home soon."

"My sister?" He asked, confused until he remembered that his father had mention a little sister.

Winry nodded, "Trisha, she's gonna be eleven this year."

Rin was silent. Not by choice, but he felt as though he couldn't breathe. Like he was going to be sick. These people had taken away nearly eleven years of his little sister's life from him that he'd never get back.

"Sh-she knows you exist…it's been one of her dreams to meet you…" She muttered, trying not to cry.

He smiled, grabbing his mother's hand, "And this is her chance."

* * *

><p>"Where do think they would've escaped to?" Alphonse asked in a whisper as they hid in an alley from the military.<p>

Roy spoke first, "They may have gotten into Havoc's store…it's not too far from Mr. McAnderson's house."

Ed nodded, "Good point, let's go see."

The three men, hoods pulled low, snuck out of the alley and down the street. Roy following Alphonse closely to keep a good hold on his sleeve for guidance. Unfortunately he was unable to grab his cane when they had been attacked. Every now and then he'd stumble over a piece of sidewalk that was higher than the rest, but the walk was fairly painless besides his few stubbed toes.

"Here we are," Ed whispered, trying not to attract attention from some nearby soldiers.

Roy nodded, "Let's go talk to an old friend."

"Good evenin' gentlemen!" Havoc's voice sounded from behind the counter.

Looking around warily the three men checked to see if there were any other people in the shop besides themselves. Deciding it was safe, they removed their hoods.

"Well I'll be damned, it's the Colonel himself!" Havoc almost shouted, "Honey! Come see who it is!"

Roy frowned, "Don't call me that."

"Right! Sorry Roy, old habits die hard," Havoc answered.

Rebecca wandered in from the back room and practically ran up to Roy, grabbing his hand and shaking it excitedly, "It's good to see ya Roy! How ya been? Have you seen Riza yet? Your kiddo's were just here!"

Ed seemed annoyed with Rebecca's energy, but perked when he heard that Rin had been here, "Wait…Rin was here?"

Havoc nodded, "Yes, and Pace as well."

"How long have they been gone?" Alphonse butted in.

Rebecca thought about this for a minute, "Only a couple hours. Their mother's came through and took them with 'em."

Roy seemed content with that answer, and Ed grimaced remembering the last time he'd surprised Winry. Al chuckled lightly at his brother's discomfort.

"We've gotta run…" Ed announced.

"What's the hurry?" Havoc asked.

"Gotta see my kids and wife as a family!" Ed shouted from the door, "Come on guys!"

Al waved goodbye to Rebecca and Havoc, "It was good seeing you! We'll stop by again!"

"Don't be shy!" Havoc shouted back, and then they were gone.

* * *

><p>The door opened to Winry's apartment, but neither of them moved.<p>

"I'm home!" A young girl's voice shouted.

Winry and Rin sat at the dining table in the kitchen, unable to see who had come in. But Winry's smile told Rin that it was his sister, and that made him excited and nervous. Excited because he'd finally be a part of her life, and nervous that he wouldn't live up to expectation.

"Don't worry!" Winry whispered to him, "Just be yourself."

"Mom?" Trisha's voice sounded again.

After looking at Rin with an encouraging smile she shouted, "I'm in the kitchen, darling!"

A small girl with bright blond hair and deep blue eyes walked into the doorway and froze at the sight of Rin.

"M-mom!" She said, startled.

"Trisha, this is Rin. Your big brother." Winry introduced them.

Trisha's mouth dropped, still frozen in the doorway, "Y-you mean…this…is my brother from Pisu? W-wasn't he supposed to live there forever?"

Winry nodded, "He snuck out just to see us. Your father's on his way as well."

With that Trisha squealed in excitement and Rin stood. Trisha ran up to Rin and attacked him in a vicious hug that he returned with his one good arm.

"What happened? Why's your arm in a sling?" She asked him from his belly. To Rin's surprise, she was extremely small, about four foot, making Rin almost two feet taller than her.

"I had a little run in with the military. They shot me in the shoulder," He told her, but seeing her concern he went on, But don't worry! It's healing wonderfully."

She smiled widely, "Good!"

* * *

><p>"Do you wanna go over to Winry's?" Riza asked me quietly after about an hour.<p>

I nodded, "That'd be cool."

"Her daughter is generally home by now. You'd get to meet Rin's sister." Riza smiled.

"That…would be even cooler!" I exclaimed, standing excitedly.

She nodded and we walked over to Winry's door, knocking twice.

We waited for a moment before Winry opened the door, "Oh! Come on in!"

"Who's that, Mom?" Trisha shouted from a bedroom.

"Why don't you come find out yourself?" Winry shouted back.

With that Rin and a little girl came out of the bedroom. Rin smiled at me when he saw me.

"Trisha," He said, kneeling down next to his sister, "This is Pace, my dear friend."

I blushed hard hearing him say 'dear friend', but managed to stutter, "Hey, Trisha. It's nice to meet you."

She laughed and whispered something into Rin's ear, gently tugging on his good arm.

"Alright. You kids go play and we'll make some dinner, sound good?" Winry said, gesturing to Riza.

Trisha nodded, grabbing her brother's hand and gesturing me to follow them into the room they had emerged from earlier.

Rin and I sat up against the wall as Trisha went to grab something from her dresser.

"I never thought I'd get to meet her," Rin whispered to me, smiling as he watched Trisha dig through one of her drawers.

I knew the feeling pretty well, "I never thought I'd do anything or meet anyone…"

Rin grabbed my hand gently in his, "But I mean…she's eleven, Pace. These people stole eleven years of her from me. I coulda done so much with her!"

"I know what ya mean," I replied quietly, "It's so great that you got to meet your little sister at all though!"

He nodded," I know that, I just wished I had more time."

I smiled, "You do. We just have to convince Maliki that Alchemists aren't dangerous."

With that he squeezed my hand, smiling before leaning over to me. He hesitated just a moment before pushing his lips to my forehead.

"You're really something, ya know that?" He whispered into my hair.

"Oh! And I found out why we were kept apart while we grew up!" I told him, pulling back from him.

"Why's that?" He asked, curiosity written all over his face.

I grabbed the hem of my shirt, "When we were younger and just learning alchemy you accidentally hurt me," I told him, lifting my shirt to show the scar on my side.

His fingers gently traced the jagged scar, "I did that?"

Nodding I continued, "You had been able to use prayer alchemy at the time and they hadn't known. You clapped and pushed your hands to the ground and a sharp spike of the earth stabbed me through the side. So they kept us apart until we were able to control our alchemy."

I pulled down my shirt and smiled at him softly, "They kept us apart for safety reasons."

He nodded, and I could see how concerned he was, so I added, "Don't worry, it wasn't your fault. You didn't know."

* * *

><p>Later, as we sat around the table for dinner, there was another knock on the door. Confused, we all looked at one another, mentally asking if anyone knew who it was.<p>

"It's open!" Winry shouted, apparently unwilling to get up to get the door.

The door opened and there were a shuffle of feet, everyone staring at the kitchen doorway in anticipation to see who it was.

"I smell something delicious!" My father's voice sounded from behind the wall.

My eyes widened and I jumped to my feet, "Daddy!"

"Pace!" My dad shouted in response, rushing to the door way.

Riza stood, "R-Roy?" She muttered.

"Hello, Riza," My father smiled, opening his arms wide.

Riza ran into them without hesitating, grabbing me on the way there. It was probably the best hug I've had in my life.

When Ed turned the corner and smiled at Winry he was less than shocked to see a wrench flying at his head. It hit him flat across his face, causing him to fall backward onto the floor.

Roy winced at the sound of it's smack, "You coulda just dodged that, but you're smart not to."

Ed nodded as Winry ran to him. He sat up, opening his arms wide and Winry took him down again, tears falling down her cheeks. She calmed down quickly and helped him to his feet.

Then Winry did something weird. She knelt down to Ed's knee, grabbed just above the joint, and pulled.

Suddenly, Ed fell to his left with a thud, "Really women!?"

"You're clearly due for a tweaking. It's too short anyway!" Winry shouted as she walked to her automail room.

Rin walked over to help his dad to his foot and Trisha followed him closely, her eyes wide. Obviously Rin was used to seeing his dad with only one leg, while Trisha wasn't. Once on his foot Ed put his left arm around his sons shoulders, leaning on him.

"You…" He smiled at Trisha, "Must be my daughter. Come here!"

Although she looked extremely shy, she walked willingly into Ed's open arms and they all hugged each other tight.

Roy was the first to end the moment, "Well stuff smells good and I'm starving!"

And with that we all sat around the table, smiling and laughing and telling stories as we ate. Somewhere before everyone finished their meals Winry walked in covered in grease stains and oil but smiling like she was a giddy child.

After we'd finished dinner, which I have to say was absolutely delicious, Winry brought out an apple pie. Which was also scrumptious. It was probably one of the best things I've had the pleasure of putting in my mouth since that chocolate pie Rin's family gave me back in Pisu.

We sat around the table for a long time afterwards, the grownups doing what they do and talking about old times and they time they spent apart.

Soon the clock on the wall chimed nine, and Winry firmly ordered Trisha to bed.

"But mom!" She argued, pouting at Winry.

"No, you have school tomorrow," Winry started to stand, but Terrin beat her too it.

"Why don't I take you to bed, alright?" He asked, glancing at me.

"Okay!" Triash stood as she stifled a yawn.

Standing I followed Rin and his sister into her room, where I found that she was already changed into her pajamas.

"Sleep tight," Rin mutter quietly, as I plugged Trisha's night light in, and he tucked her in.

"Hmmm..an' Rin?" She snuggled down into the blankets, her eyelids drooping. "Call me Trish…e'ry body calls me that."

Rin smiled gently down at her, "Alright, Trish."

I smiled as he kissed her forehead before flipping off the lamp next to Trish's bed.

Quietly we walked out of the room, Rin soflty closing the door.

"She's so cute," I sighed, grinning up at Rin, who smiled back. We walked back into the living room, and a thought came to me, "We gotta tell them sooner or later."

Rin frowned, "I know…I just…don't wanna ruin the moment."

"I know what you mean," I whispered, looking over the scene of smiling and hugging adults, "But if we don't do it now, we'll never get too."

Rin nodded, folding his arms over his chest, "Hey guys!"

The room went silent. But not the kind of silent you get when you're in an auditorium, the kind of silent you get when everyone in just one room is silent. It's an awkward silence, one that makes you feel weird and you start to swear and feel nervous.

I could see it in Rin, he was nervous. His face flushed, "P-pace and I h-have som-something t-to ask y-you g-guys." He stuttered.

And then their attention was on me, but I didn't get flustered and went straight to the point, "We would like to talk to President Maliki.

At that there were audible gasps from both Winry and Riza. My father put his head down and Ed just stared at Rin.

"W-we want to change how he feels about Alchemists," Rin stated, trying to be smoother in his talking.

Riza shook her head, "Maliki…is not a person to be reasoned with."

Winry nodded in agreement, "There is no changing his mind."

"Well why not?" I asked, confused as to why they were so sad.

"He's got a grudge against Alchemists. That much is clear," Winry muttered.

Riza added on, "Those who tried to get Alchemists back were thrown out roughly and put on a watch list."

Roy frowned, "Are you guys on that list?"

Riza looked away from him, "Yes," She whispered.

"You're not going to see Maliki!" Winry announced solidly.

I was startled by the sternness in her voice. Taken aback by how angry she looked.

"Why not?" Rin and I asked simultaneously.

She sighed, exasperated, "Because I said so!"

"And he's a dangerous man wielding too much power!" Riza shouted.

Again, I was surprised by how angry they were. By how adverse they were to us going anywhere involving Maliki.

I frowned, "We have too."

"Why?" Riza asked me, "Why is it so important to you?"

And for some reason, I got really upset right there. Tears started streaming down my cheeks as I told them, "Because I need you. Because my father needs you. Because I can't spend more time in the brinks of nowhere when I know I could be doing better. Because I can't stand listening to my father cry at night when he's alone!"

I ran off, unable to calm down. The silence that I left was unbearable. Filled with a mixture of anger and sorrow. Eventually their conversation started up again, but I couldn't hear them. I was still too upset to listen to anything outside my own mind. I sat in a dark room that was clearly a bathroom.

I was still crying when I heard a knock on the door. It was silent for a moment before someone spoke up.

"Pace, can I come in?" I heard my father say.

I moved away from the door as he turned the nob. Pushing the door open just wide enough for him to fit through.

"Are you okay?" He asked me, sitting down next to me on the floor.

I leaned into him, shaking my head, "I'm sorry, Daddy."

He put his arm around me, his hand resting on my waist, "Don't be sorry, Pace."

"I just…I can't go back to that," I whispered.

"I know baby girl," My father muttered into my hair, "I don't want you to go back to that either."

I had started to shake, my eyes starting to tear up again. My father's hand went up and down my side, soothing me, as he pushed his lips into my hair.

"It'll be okay," He whispered," I promise."

Having calmed down sufficiently I asked my father the question that had been pushing on my mind for a while, "So are we gonna be able to talk to Maliki?"

He nodded, "We'll just have to stay low for a while until we can make plans and get you guys in there, okay?"

"You ready to go out now?" He asked me, "Rin's rather worried about you."

"Yea, let's go," I muttered.

I knew I looked like hell since I'd been crying for so long, but I didn't particularly care anymore, Rin had seen me through worse and everyone else had to understand. So I walked out there like I was fine, nothing was wrong.

"You good?" Rin asked me when he caught sight of me.

"Yea, I'm fine," I smiled at him.

He smiled back at me, "We're gonna see Maliki, our parents are together, and we have each other."

"Now let's keep it that way," I said, grabbing his hand in my own.

* * *

><p><strong>{Well…at least it wasn't a cliffhanger this time?} True<strong>

**So, the quote for this chapter is a bit different, while you can still get a shout out for guessing where the quote is from, you can also get one by answering the riddle correctly! {And an extra sparkly gold star to whoever can answer both! This is one of my favorite quotes from this anime, so please make me happy! And as always, please don't use the internet to cheat} **

** "When the snow melts, what does it become?"**

**PLEASE REVIEW~**


	11. Chapter 11

**Alright! Chapter 11! {Yay!}**

**{GOD! I HURT!} Hmmm even after two extra days of camp, you are still sore…wow… {hey! You've only had three days of camp! I've had five!} I also made myself sick by going to Taekwondo right after that…because believe it or not! Apparently the human body has limits! . **

**{Meh…and my giant bug bites aren't helping…} Seriously, those things are almost as big as my hand! {And they are so ITCHY! GAAAHHH!} I think you're allergic to mosquitos dearest…but of course, everyone is to some degree. **

**Review responses!**

**Mixmax300: {Awe thanks! XD And don't worry! There's plenty more cute moments to come!} As always, thank you for your wonderful review! And as my co-author has mentioned, many mamy more cute moments to come. ****J**** They're rather fun to write. **

**Practice4morale: { You have NO idea how excited I was to bring Trisha in! I defiantly love to put those little 'aww family' stuff without making it seem unrealistic, and just as you said she lets me do that XD And I'm defiantly having a blast…even if me body hates me now } Oh…my gosh…I've missed your reviews and am overjoyed that you are so into our little story. It's exciting to write and even reread! Lol…because that's what I do when I get bored. ;)**

* * *

><p>The next week flew by in a blur of new and exciting things. Rin and I learned a lot about his little sister, like how she shared Ed's hatred for milk, much to Rin's amusement. Roy and Riza seemed completely overjoyed to be together again and so were Winry and Ed, although it sometimes felt like Winry was more interested in Ed's automail. She had given him an extra automail while she fixed his so that he could still get around.<p>

It felt good to be together as a family again. Like nothing could ever go wrong again, but I knew that was naive. Everything could still go wrong. If we were caught, if we attracted too much attention, everything could go down the drain and we'd be worse off than we were before.

But for the time being, I felt good.

I was constantly over at Winry's with my father as my mom went to work. Winry also worked, leaving us with just Roy, Ed, and Al as adult supervision. Which was fine since Rin and I didn't need watching and we were always with Trisha.

"Hey Pace!" I heard my father shout from the kitchen, "Come help me make lunch!"

"Duty calls guys," I whispered as I stood and left Rin with Trisha.

As I handed my father ingredients we went through the process we'd always known for cooking. We were making a stew, which he was particularly good at making, and soon enough we had a crowd gathered from the smell.

"Since when did you know how to cook, Colonel?" Ed asked sarcastically.

My father glared in Ed's direction, but didn't respond to him, "Pace, hand me the carrots, please."

I handed him the carrots and I heard Ed mutter, "Man, you're no fun."

We continued this cycle for a while until we'd finished and he was content with the texture, the smell, and the taste. And we were ready to eat.

Everyone sat down, wary of the blind man's meal, each with their own bowl of the steaming stew.

"Dig in!" My dad said, grabbing his spoon and dipping it in his bowl.

Automatically, I started shoveling the stew into my mouth. It was amazing, I've always loved my father's stew.

Rin, who had watched for my reaction, took his spoon and started to eat, smiling quickly. Soon, everyone was happily eating spoonful after spoonful of my father's stew. Nobody bothering to talk until after everyone had eaten all of their stew.

"That…was delicious, sir," Rin told my father as he took our bowls to the sink.

"Thank you, Rin!" My father smiled.

It was around five in the afternoon when Riza and Winry came home, but they'd brought two other people. One, a younger girl wearing white capris with a pink blouse. She was pretty, bright green eyes with blond hair cut in a bob. The other a large man wearing loose fitting black pants and a white t-shirt with a tan over coat. He was kind of scary looking with his white hair and the large x-shaped scar across his face.

They seemed surprised to see so many people in the one room. But then they recognized us.

"Oh! These are your kids! And Edward and Al and Uncle Roy!" The girl squealed excitedly.

"Elicia!" Ed smiled, "How you been?"

She hugged him, "I've been good! What about you?"

"I've been good as well," She said, smiling, "It's good to see you guys again!"

Quickly went over to Al and hugged him, before almost attacking my dad in a hug.

"Uncle Roy! It's so good to see you!" She exclaimed as my dad hugged her tightly.

"It's good to see you too, Elicia," My dad grinned, obviously using the term 'see' lightly.

Then she walked over to Rin and I, "You must be Pace and Terrin! I'm Elicia!"

"Just Rin is fine," Rin told her, offering her hand, but he got a hug instead.

"It's nice to meet you Elicia," I smiled as I got a hug too.

Then Elicia turned to the large, scary man and introduced him, "And this is Scar."

"Nice to meet you," He said, his voice deep.

We sat down in Winry's living room to talk about anything and everything. But we got serious suddenly when we had mentioned being here to talk to Maliki.

"He won't listen," Elicia muttered.

"So we've heard," I frowned.

Elicia looked at Scar and he shrugged. She took a deep breath, "There is no talking to him, there is only taking him down."

"What do you mean?" Rin asked, confused.

"We're part of a resistance that's attempting to overthrow Maliki," Scar said very matter-of-factly.

We nodded, listening intently as they continued to explain, "There's a Ball coming up and we need people who aren't on the 'watch list' to go in."

"We could do it!" I blurted out before thinking, then blushing when I realized that I had the entire group staring at me.

Scar and Elicia looked at each other, "They are unknown…" Scar muttered.

"But they're kids!" Elicia whispered in response.

"So were Ed and Al when I fought them!" Scar whispered back.

"I say we let them do it," Ed announced, folding his arms over his chest.

Rin looked shocked, "R-really?"

"Why not? I was much younger and did way more dangerous stuff…" He responded.

"These are your kids we're talking about…" Elicia exclaimed.

"I believe they can do it! I wouldn't send them in there if I didn't believe they wouldn't be able to do it!" Ed shouted.

Winry put a hand on his shoulder, "Ed, calm down."

"I know what I'm doing," Ed grumbled.

Elicia raised her hands in the air, "If you believe they can do it, then I'm in. Roy, what do you think?"

He thought a moment, "They can do it."

"Then it's decided! Ball's in a month exactly!" We'll see you three days before that for prepping and planning!" Elicia said, jumping up.

"It was good seeing you, Elicia," Riza called as Elicia and Scar walked out the door.

"Does she always leave suddenly?" I asked after the door shut.

Winry nodded, "Generally. As a founding member of this resistance she's always running around."

"Huh, who would have thought?" Ed mused, as Ed and my dad broke off into their own conversation. While Riza and Winry stood and went into the kitchen, to make dinner.

Turning to Rin I glanced at his bad arm, thinking back at how Mr. McAnderson would take a look at his shoulder every few days. After voicing this thought, Rin nodded with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Especially if we want to be able to do this mission thing," He mused, nodding. "Let's talk to my mom and see if she has some bandages."

Nodding we both stood, stretching slightly as we made our way into the kitchen.

"Hey, mom?" Rin asked, as we entered. "Do you have some extra bandages?"

"Bandages?" Winry asked, eyebrows raised. "…Why?"

"Nothing to be worried about!" I cut in, seeing the slightly alarmed look in Riza's eye. "I'm going to take a look at Rin's shoulder."

"Oh! That makes sense!" Winry smiled, moving to her cabinet to pull out a basket of bandages and other various medical things. Handing it to me, she smiled, before looking thoughtful. "You know, I'm pretty proficient in the human body...I am an automail expert. And my parents were doctors. Do you think I can take a look?"

"That would be great!" I exclaimed.

Winry led us into Rin's temporary bedroom, "So, how long have you been in this sling?"

"Just over a month?" He said, glancing at me for confirmation.

I nodded, "Mr. McAnderson said it would be two months at least for it to heal." Winry nodded, as I helped Rin out of his shirt, revealing the thick white bandages wrapped firmly around his shoulder and chest. Rin sat on his bed, as I stepped up beside him to gently start unwinding the bandage. Finally a pile of dirty bandages lay next to Rin on the bed, as the bullet wound was let out in the open air.

Sitting down next to Rin, I gently reached up to brush the reddened skin near the now healing scar, which was round, about the size of a large coin. While it was still healing, luckily it looked clean, with no sign of infection.

Winry moved to stand next to me, her hand hovering over the slightly twisted scar, "Does it hurt much?"

Rin shook his head, as I gently placed a hand behind his shoulder and the other on his upper arm. Slowly I started having him roll his shoulder, the wiry muscles beneath my hands shifting. During the time at the McAnderson's, I had been shown how to help stretch and check Rin's wound. After rolling his shoulder a few times, I shifted to have Rin slowly lift his arm up and out to the side, parallel to the ground. Gently I guided his arm slightly back, causing him to wince slightly.

"Sorry," I muttered, wincing along with him. Rin shook as I continued to move his arm out in front of him.

We continued stretching Rin's shoulder for about twenty more minutes, while Winry watched on, who occasionally interjected with advice.

Finally, we had finished, and Rin had a light sheen of sweat covering his chest.

Gently I pressed a large bandage pad to the bullet hole, and had Rin hold it in place, while I snuggly wrapped a long bandage around his shoulder and upper chest. Tying off the bandage, I faintly heard Winry slipping out of the room. Next, I helped Rin shrug on the button up shirt he had on before, before moving to help him with the sling.

As I moved to exit the room, Rin caught my wrist, gently pulling me to relax back onto the bed next to him.

"Stay here with me for a bit," He smiled when I shot him a curious look. I opened my mouth to respond, only to be cut off by a loud boom of thunder.

Letting out a squeak of terror, I quickly ducked into Rin's chest.

I hadn't noticed that it had started raining.

"Pace?" Rin's soft voice was curious, but he didn't push me away, like I was expecting. Instead, his arm wove around my shoulders and tucked me into his chest.

"I…don't like thunder," I mumbled into Rin's firm shoulder, my cheeks heating.

That of course, was a major understatement. I absolutely hated thunder. Not that I could explain why I hated thunder, it really just made me uncomfortable. Like being surrounded in a large crowd with no sign of a way out for claustrophobic people. Or maybe like being forced to look out a high widow and feeling like you were falling for someone who was afraid of heights. It made me panic every time.

"Huh," I could feel Rin gently resting his chin on top of my head, his arm tightening with the flash of lightning, and its following rumble of booming thunder.

"I know, lame right?" I tried to joke, despite the fact that I couldn't stop shaking.

"Nah, that's fine," Rin rubbed his hand in soothing circles across my back. "It's not a rare thing to be shaken up by thunder."

Relief blossomed somewhere inside my chest, much to my own surprise. I guess I had been worried that Rin would laugh or think I was weak for fearing something as simple as thunder.

We sat in silence, listening to the sounds of the storm, Rin continuing to rub his calming circles into my back.

After a while I finally spoke, no louder than a whisper.

"Thank you, Rin."

* * *

><p>Later that night I wandered into the living room to see my dad on our couch while my mother was in the shower.<p>

"Are you sure Rin and I can do this?" I asked, sitting on the couch next to him.

"Yes," He answered automatically, "You're strong, and I know you can do anything you put your mind to."

I was glad he had faith in me, but something was still eating at my thoughts, "What if something goes wrong?"

He turned to me and took my hand in his, "It won't."

"How are you so sure?" I asked him, wondering why he had so much faith in me.

"Because you're my daughter," He said simply.

That's when my mom walked in, clearly having overheard our conversation.

"And it's because you're his daughter that we believe you can do this," She said proudly.

"She's also your daughter," Roy commented.

"This is true!" She laughed.

I smiled, so this is what it was like to have a family.

* * *

><p>Two days later, I was relaxing in Riza's living room when Rin came in, looking sheepish.<p>

"Hey, is something wrong?" I asked, as he shifted uneasily.

"Um…so…if we go to this dance…we'll probably be needing to like…dance at one point," Rin's face was slowly getting redder as he continued to stumble over himself, all the while rubbing at the back of his neck.

"Yeah…?" I grinned, feeling that I knew what he was going to say.

"idontknowhowtodance," Rin suddenly said in a rush.

I blinked, laughing slightly, "Wait, slow down a bit."

Rin blushed brightly, before mumbling, "I don't know how to dance."

This caused me to smile widely, as I stood, "Really? Like at all?"

He shook his head, before looking at me curiously, "Do you?"

I nodded, "My dad's been teaching me sense I was little." I waited a moment as Rin processed this. "And I think I could teach you…"

Rin's eyes lit up slightly, "Really? Thanks!"

Quickly he pulled me into a tight one armed hug as I laughed happily.

"Gimme a bit, and I'll talk to my parents and see if we can move the furniture around," I told him, as I leaned up to peck him on the cheek. "And change into something you can move around in."

He nodded, a slightly goofy smile on his face, "Thanks again, Pace."

"No problem, Rin," I smiled back, before waving him off.

Twenty minutes later, my parents and I had cleared away everything in the living room, leaving a nice open space. When Rin entered the room, wearing a pair of loose sweats, I was fiddling with a radio.

"Pace?" looking up at his questioning voice I smiled, standing.

"Like it?" I asked spinning so the long black skirt I was wearing swirled around my ankles. "I borrowed it from my mom. She thinks I'll be wearing a long dress."

"Y-you look great," Rin stuttered slightly, looking ruffled.

I giggled slightly, before putting my hands on my hips, "Alright! Time to start dancing!"

He smiled, stepping forward, "Alright!"

I laughed as I reached forward to grab Rin's good hand, "Alright, so because your arm is still in its sling, we'll just have to pretend that you can, and you'll know what to do later." I gently pulled Rin closer to me, lifting our linked hands out slightly at shoulder height. "Now, because you are the guy, you'll be leading, so you'll hold my right hand with your left here." Gently I lay my left hand on Rin's shoulder. "Now, when your arm is better, you'll be placing it below my arm and on my shoulder blade."

I smiled at the look of concentration on Rin's face, as he absorbed the new information. Pulling away, I crossed the floor and flipped on the radio, allowing a slower song to float through the air.

"Now, when thinking of dancing, you want to think in threes," I turned back to Rin, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the center of the floor. "Now start with your feet together, and follow my lead." After a moment of pause where I allowed myself to feel the beat, I started to count softly, "One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three." Stepping back with my left foot, I started moving through the familiar steps of a simple waltz. "Think of moving in a box."

I smiled as Rin awkwardly moved with me, glancing down at his feet every few seconds. We continued like this for multiple songs, as I continued to give Rin feedback.

Soon, Rin started to relax, and I smiled, moving my hand to gently move his chin up, when I noticed that Rin was glancing down, his shoulders tense, "Relax, you're doing great!"

After about an hour I decided to finish the 'lesson', "Alright, we can keep these up every few days, until the ball, and you'll be fine."

Rin smiled sheepishly, "Hopefully,"

I snorted and gently shoved him, "None of that now! You'll be fine."

At one point, my parents had wandered in, and as we started to finish, a familiar song drifted through radio.

I turned a smile on my face, as my dad stood, crossing the empty space to come to a stop in front of me, bowing low and holding out his hand.

"May I have this dance, Madam?" He asked, his voice silky smooth.

I giggled softly, remembering how my dad had done this every time when I was younger, "Why yes, you may."

Gently, my dad pulled me a few steps back, softly whispering to me, "How much room do we have?"

I laughed, "Just a little bigger than back in Pisu."

My dad nodded, before leading me into a smooth, slightly fast waltz.

I smiled as we floated around the living room, smoothly adding lifts, whisks, and various other complicated moves.

I felt a smile growing on my face as I spun, a feeling of freedom bubbling up in my chest. For a moment, all of the worries that had been piling up sipped away.

As we came to the end of the song, we slowed, following the flow of the melody.

Ending with a twirling lift, I laughed, bowing slightly as my dad gently brought my hand up to kiss, before pulling me into a warm hug.

The sound of clapping from Riza and Rin caused me blush bright, burying my face into my dad's chest.

* * *

><p>Just under a month later Elicia showed up three days before the Ball.<p>

"You ready guys?" Elicia asked, bouncing in place slightly, obviously excited.

"As ready as we'll ever be," I muttered, not sure why I was dreading today.

"We're going shopping!" Elicia shouted.

There was an audible groan from all the men in the party and Elicia was quick to add, "Oh, don't worry boys. Only Rin gets to be tortured today."

Rin frowned, but I grabbed his hand, "Don't worry. It can't be all bad, can it?"

He smiled and I got the feeling that he knew something I didn't.

We went along with Elicia and Scar, Rin's hair still black and keeping his head low. Winry and Riza had come along with us, leaving Ed, Al and Roy by themselves, Trisah was at school.

"First, we have to buy a dress to go to a Ball!" Elicia said, practically jumping in excitement.

Rin sighed along with Scar.

When we got to the dress place Elicia forced Rin and Scar to wait outside as we went in to find a suitable dress.

"What are your least favorite colors?" Elicia asked me, looking through a rack tight fitting dresses.

"Pink," I told her, making it clear that I wasn't going to wear anything even vaguely pink.

She nodded, "Thought so. What about style?"

I looked at my mother and shrugged, not sure of what my style was.

"I've never worn a dress…I dunno," I mumbled, looking at the many racks of dresses and feeling overwhelmed.

With that Elicia looked me up and down, and nodded, "Nothing tight fitting."

I was thankful for that. Those dresses looked like they should be the wrappers on sausages…and that was it.

"She has an amazing figure," A sales man suddenly showed up behind us, causing us to jump. "If I may, I think that this beautiful young lady would look absolutely _amazing_ in a longer gown!"

The adults glanced at each other, then at me, before nodding, "Lead away!"

"Oh yay~!" the Sales man squealed happily, grabbing Elicia and Riza's arms, pulling them eagerly into a different section of "gowns" as he called them. My mother and Winry were looking at them with the same overwhelmed expression as I was.

We wandered around the store as Elicia and the sales man held dresses up to me debating for a bit, before she hung them across her arm. In the end I had about ten dresses to try on.

I came out in the first one.

"No," My mother said bluntly.

"Too much ruffle," the sales man stood with his hip cocked, as he tilted his head at me.

Elicia looked at me, "I agree, go try on another one!"

By this point Winry had left to go wait with Scar and Rin. Dresses weren't her thing, automail was.

I tried on eight others and it almost seemed like none of them would work. I was losing hope and was quickly losing my patients for this. But then, I found _the one_.

Elicia was squealing with glee when I walked out and decided that that was the one I'd get. Riza was smiling at me like I was a diamond or something.

Much to Elicia's amusement, and my embarrassment, the sales man was squealing just as much as Elisia, exclaiming, "Oh! It's beautiful! Absolutely _FABULOS!_"

After I had changed back out of the dress, the sales man dashed behind the counter and put a cover on it that concealed the dress completely. You couldn't even see the faintest glimpse of the dress underneath.

When we walked out Rin perked up. Then, catching sight of the large bag strung across Elicia's arm he asked about a million questions about what it looked like. Elicia refused to tell him anything.

"Can I at least know the color?" He asked desperately.

"No! Pace, you're not allowed to tell him either!" She shouted.

Riza put a hand on my shoulder, "You're going to be beautiful."

I smiled as we walked to our next destination. A suit store.

As Rin and Scar had waited for me, Riza and I now waited for him. This time, Winry was much more enthusiastic about shopping.

We waited for a long time before he came out with a similar looking bag slung across his arm. I didn't bother asking questions about it, knowing Elicia would just shoot me down anyway.

Not excitedly, we started the long trek home. It had gotten later than we'd expected and the sun was starting to go down.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Rin was limping, his leg clearly bugging him. The long day had clearly been hard on his still healing leg, which was still sour for his at times.

Walking a bit closer to him, I glanced up at Rin's face, "Are you okay?"

He glanced down at me, his smile tight around the corners, "Yeah, I'm fine. It's nothing to worry about!"

I rolled my eyes, "As soon as we get back, you're going to sit down and relax, okay?"

Rin sighed, but nodded in agreement.

"Hey Riza!" Someone shouted from behind us.

My mother sighed as she turned to see who it was, "Hello Brenda."

Scar turned around as well, "Olivier."

I turned to see a group of four people walking towards us. Three men and one woman. I knew two of the three men from the one picture of my dad's team. The other man and the woman were unknown to me.

"I see you got my message!" Elicia exclaimed.

"Yeah, now what do ya want?" The woman asked grumpily.

Elicia took a look around her, "We need to plan for the Ball."

And with that, the group of people soon to be sitting in Winry's living room grew from eight to fourteen. Some were standing, other sitting on the floor, or in pulled up chairs from the kitchen.

I made sure that Rin sat, because I knew that he didn't want to show weakness because of his leg. I stood behind him.

"So we're sending the young ones in to do our dirty work?" Olivier Armstrong asked, slightly unhappy with the idea.

My father nodded, "They're the most qualified people here to do this."

"You gotta be stealthy, got that?" Breda told us, squinting.

Rin and I nodded, "We understand. No one is to know who we really are."

"We've prepared you with fake names," Feury told us, "You're now Kyo and Sora Jenkins. You are an newly-wed couple, just a week out of the wedding. Kyo is the step-son of Arthur Jenkins, one of our undercover members."

"And Sora is an orphan with no family left from the war," Brenda added.

"Why do we need fake names?" Rin asked, "I mean…I understand the last name. But technically we don't need fake first names, right?"

Feury shook his head, "They have your names on record and they'll be asking for names to check the records for names like yours and your parents."

"Then how is this possible?" Alphonse asked.

"The only names on that list are those of alchemists and their supporters. As long as your name isn't one of those, you're good to go in," Elicia explained to us.

"Makes sense," I muttered.

We made the plans and they made us recite it over and over again to make sure we had it, and then they were gone. Leaving Rin and I to think about what we'd gotten ourselves into.

The Ball was in three days, technically two, and Elicia and Scar would come back to help us get ready and go over the plan once more.

"You sure you wanna do this?" I heard Winry ask Rin.

"Yes mom," He responded, "I can't handle being away from where I know I belong."

It was late but my parents had decided to go for a walk and Winry, Ed, and Al were in the kitchen. Trisha had long since gone to bed since she had school in the morning.

I sat on the couch with Rin, curled up into his side with his arm wrapped around me.

"Are you excited?" He asked me quietly.

I thought about this for a moment, "Yes."

"Me too," He smiled, "I can't wait to see you in this dress that you won't tell me anything about."

"And I'm excited to see you in this tux of yours," I teased him.

His arm tightened around me and I smiled. I realized how good it felt to be with him, how safe I felt with him.

"Pace," He whispered.

"Yes?" I asked, wondering what he had to say.

"D-do you think we can do this? I mean…it's a pretty big task," He muttered.

I was silent, thinking of how to say this, "I think we can. Sure, it's a big task, but so is Human Transmutation and your dad did that when he was…what? Six? Seven? This is just talking to one person and asking him to step down and taking forceful action if he doesn't."

"I guess I just feel like this is more complicated," He sighed.

"Rin," I said, sitting up to look him in the eyes, "I honestly believe we can do whatever we put our minds to."

He smiled at me, his eyes lighting up, "Yea, you're right."

I hadn't realized I was tired, but somewhere I fell asleep on him and I was surprised when I woke up and we were still on the couch. He was behind me, his arm draped across my side to keep me from rolling off the couch. I had vaguely remembered laying down though.

Trying not to wake him, I attempted to sit up, apparently he was a light sleeper and his arm tightened, "Not yet…" He mumbled.

I looked at a little clock they had, it was about five in the morning.

"Rin, are my parents' home?" I asked him quietly.

"Yea, you slept through them and I didn't want to move you so they let you stay here," He whispered back.

I nodded, feeling a little better now that I knew my parents had come home.

"Pace," He mumbled behind me, still half asleep.

"Yes?" I whispered, still trying to be quiet.

"Do you think you could go back to sleep for a couple hours?" Rin asked me, shifting slightly.

I nodded, knowing he was falling back to sleep as we talked. And although I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep anymore, I let him drift off as I lay there awake.

When he woke a few hours later he seemed surprised to find me still there.

"You didn't leave!" He exclaimed quietly.

I laughed lightly, "I kinda couldn't."

"I'm glad you didn't. I could get used to waking up with you," He whispered to me, then blushed harshly, burying his face in my hair.

Blushing madly, I sat up, "Not gonna lie…I could too."

"Good morning you two," Winry said as she wandered in.

"Good morning," We echoed as she sauntered into the bathroom.

I looked over at Rin, "I better go…"

He frowned at me, "But…why?"

"My parents…" I had started, but was cut off.

"They know you're here…come one," He begged, "Stay with me…"

I nodded, "Okay, I'll stay. But I'll have to leave eventually."

He smiled widely, "That's okay."

Winry came back a little later, "Pace, your parents left the door open to the apartment last night. So if you wanna go back and spend the morning with your parents, I'm sure they'd like that since you guys go on a pretty dangerous mission tomorrow evening."

I nodded, standing, "Thanks Winry. I'll see you later, Rin."

When I walked into my own apartment I was surprised to see my mom with breakfast on the table.

"Good morning, Pace!" Riza smiled at me.

"Good morning," I echoed, looking around for my father.

She chuckled a little, "You father will be out shortly. Why don't you go get washed up and then we'll all have breakfast together?"

I smiled, "That'll be nice."

* * *

><p>That night, Rin and Pace were finally getting ready for the Ball.<p>

Pace was still getting ready while Rin waited for her down stairs in the lounge of the apartment. Pace had been up there in Winry's apartment for about four hours now.

All of the guys had been kicked out of the apartment not to long after an early dinner for the two families.

An hour ago, Rin was pulled into Riza's apartment to shower, change and pull his hair neatly into a tight, high ponytail.

Roy walked over to Rin, looking rather intimidating with his hair smoothly slicked back and his sharp looking suit, "Boy, we need to talk."

"Y-yes, sir?" Rin asked, uneasiness filling chest as he turned to face the blind man, something in the back of his mind wondering what they'd have to talk about.

"You will not take advantage of my daughter tonight," Roy growled softly, leaning forward and pressing his fist against Rin's chest.

Rin was shocked by Roy's sudden change of manner. He'd always seemed like such a soft guy.

"Of – of c-course not, S-sir." Rin stammered nervously. Roy's unfocused gray eyes were unnervingly close to staring into Rin's own eyes.

Roy nodded gruffly, "Damn right you won't."

Suddenly the sound of footsteps down the stairs brought Roy's blank stare away, along with Rin's Ed's, Al's, and Scar's.

Pace's footsteps started down the stairs as Rin turned, his jaw dropping and his heart stopping.

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><p><strong>{Ahhh…don't hurt us?}<strong>

**IT WAS SILV'S IDEA! {OI! Don't just throw me under the bus!} **

**BUT! We have chapter 12 pretty much done! **

**{ALSO! We have a SUPER SPECIAL BONUS four you guys! Miss Practice4morale has amazingly accepted our challenge! We will be posting her one shot right after this one!}**

**Quote:**

**Before we have our quote, a super shiny star to BOTH Mixmax300 and Practice4morale for getting both the answer to the riddle and quote correctly! {being Spring and Fruits basket respectfully} **

**"We are like fireworks. We climb, shine, and always go our separate ways and become futher apart. But even if that time comes, let's not disappear like a firework, and continue to shine forever!"**

**And please REVIEW!**


	12. Super Special Bonus!

**ALRIGHT! What we have here is the AMAZING Miss Practice4morale's response to our challange!} So that means that THIS IS NOT OUR WRITING!**

**{Enjoy!}**

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><p>Pace's Sunrise<p>

I remembered a time when waking up meant blinking into light. Now it was like things had flipped places. As vivid dreams faded, the darkness returned with my conscious. It was a bittersweet thing, seeing memories in my sleep. Seeing people I couldn't touch anymore then waking up and touching people I couldn't see.

My fingertips felt along the peeling walls. I yawned as I made it the short distance into the kitchen area. My shoulders slumped with every step as my bare feet detected new weak spots in the flooring. Every day seemed to bring just another place our home was falling apart. It was no surprise. You let one crack remain in the foundation and there would be nothing to stop new ones from forming. I knew that. I just couldn't do anything about it with my sight gone. I frowned to myself. Probably just end up making it worse and have to call a neighbor over anyway.

"Daddy?" Pace's small voice caught me off guard.

I stopped and listened for my daughter's padded footsteps. I felt her soft little hands grip onto my first three fingers. She'd be five years old in a month and she was still so small. Part of me wondered if she wasn't getting enough food. Part of me wondered if I was just an idiot about kids and should stop worrying.

"Saved you a spot," Pace said, leading me.

"How kind of you," I said.

I heard her giggling at her own joke. She'd been telling this one every day for about a week now. We only owned two chairs. It cracked her up that there was actually a figure of speech implying there could be enough chairs in one kitchen for us to get choosey about where we sat.

Pace placed my hand on the rough wooden back of my chair and I heard it creak under my touch. "Thank you, sweetheart," I said.

"Welcome, Daddy!"

I heard her tiny steps flit across the floor and I winced at the cut off. Her body thumped into her seat, her chair creaking loudly under her impact. She'd jumped. Again.

"Pace," I said. "What did we talk about?"

"Hm?"

I felt my mouth turn down. "No more jumping. You could hurt yourself."

"I didn't jump."

"Yeah, you did."

Her tone became defensive. "No, I didn't."

I dragged my hand down my face. So, we were doing this again. "Come on, Pace. Saying it over and over won't make it true. I heard you jump."

She was quiet. She didn't usually fight me like this. Usually just took the correction like a man and made her apology. She only really turned adversarial when she was feeling bothered about something completely unrelated, and that was never easy for me to deal with. Pace had a poker face like her mother's, if that made any sense for a blind man to say.

I folded my arms. "Pace."

"I didn't jump!" she said. "I flied."

I blinked. "You…flied?"

"Yeah," she said. "I flied into my chair."

"Ah," I said. "Well, that's another matter entirely."

"Yuh huh," she said.

"We've never had any flyers in this house before."

"Nope."

"Maybe we need to make some guidelines."

She was quiet for a moment, probably weighing the outcomes. "Um, okay."

"For starters," I said, "no taking off in unsafe areas." I tapped the sharp corner of our breakfast table. "Like pointy stuff." I gestured to the window next to us. "Or stuff that could break if you veered off course."

"Check," said Pace. She seemed to be enjoying this.

"Second," I said. "Make sure you have a designated stable landing site." I pointed in the direction of her chair's creaking. "Is that landing site stable?"

She seemed to think it over. "Guess not."

"Where would be a better place?" I said.

"Grass?" she said. "Or the couch!"

"Alright, but only if I'm holding your hand when you're flying on the couch. Knowing you, you'll probably try to fly from one end to the other and hurt yourself."

Sometimes keeping kids alive seemed more difficult than commanding a unit.

I jumped in my skin as the table creaked and the wood top vibrated under my hand. Pace's bony knees thumped across as she crawled to me by the most direct route she knew. I frowned as I felt her hand fisting my shirt.

"Pace," I said. "We talked about this. The table is for eating off of. Are you food?"

I grunted as she plunked herself in my lap. Her arms twined around my neck in an excited tug. She rocked on my thighs and I heard the soft thump of her palm pressing against our old window.

"It's here!" she said.

Warmth melted over me. I knew what those words meant. The sun was making its appearance. I pulled my arm around her and listened to her narrate the sunrise, how it was through her eyes. There were sunrises, and then there were Pace's sunrises.

"It's so big!" she said. "It's ginormous today! It's bigger than yesterday! It really is this time! It's making everything in the village glow!"

"Uh huh." I patted her back. The coarse cloth of her nightgown was warm under my hand.

"If I flied up all the way to that sky," she said, "I'd touch that pink cloud first." I felt her press her feather-soft hair against my rough chin. "And then I'd touch the one with the glowing part. And the blue one that's got the silver wisps. And the other blue one that's got silver wisps. And the other blue one that's got silver wisps. No, I'd do that blue one that's got silver wisps before that one that's got silver wisps, actually. Then I'd touch the sun."

"What would it feel like, do you think?"

Her shoulder shrugged against me. "Only one way to find out."

"Mm," I said with a smile. "Guess we've got some flying practice ahead of us."

Her weight slumped against my shoulder and she sighed contentedly. I kissed her hair. Her fingers rested on my cheek. "Hey, Daddy? What do sunrises look like to you?"

I blinked. "Um…"

She waited.

"Well," I said. "They look like…"

Black. Utter darkness. Just your voice and your little body curled up in my arms. And you know that. I don't have to say it.

I felt her other hand on my face and her breath puffed on my skin. She was looking right at me instead of at the window. That was practically unheard of for her while the sun was at its peak. "What?" she said.

I tilted my head down to press my forehead to hers. "The sunrise looks like your mother. How the sun used to glint off her face when she'd smile and hand me a cup of coffee before briefings."

I could've sworn I felt a tremor run through my daughter as I finished those words. I straightened. I strained to put on a smile for her. Pace pulled up on my lap and pecked my cheek with her tiny lips, like a touch from a butterfly. I rested my hand on her head and stroked her hair.

"What's the sun doing now?" I said.

"It's making the roofs sparkle," she said with a soft smile in her voice.

"Sounds beautiful."

Her hand tugged on my sleeve. "Daddy?"

"Yeah, Pace?"

"I think," she said, "maybe you should learn how to fly too. So you can touch your sunrise."

For a moment, my breath caught and I wasn't sure what to say. I swallowed. I closed my eyes. "Well." I smiled a little. "You'll have to hold onto me so I don't get lost."

She laughed. "We got all kinds of rules, huh?"

I sighed. "In more ways than one."

"Huh?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. Hey, Pace?"

"Yeah?"

"No more climbing across the table."

She let out a breath. "Sorry. Got excited."

"Nothing wrong with getting excited," I said. "Just do it from the ground next time."

She cackled and wriggled as I tickled her tummy. Felt like a little monkey jumping around on my lap. As if I'd ever held a monkey to know that. She _was_ a monkey, though. She was everywhere at once, just full of energy all the time. Every new thing was an open invitation to be explored. Every surface was a potential surface for her to be using as her floor. Now even the sky had been added to her growing list of boundaries waiting to be breached. Nothing was too much for this girl. It was just another variable in the game.

In a way, she scared me with her resolve to live life like she wasn't half as limited as she really was. In another way, I was exceedingly proud.

"Hey, Pace," I said. "I take it back."

She turned in my lap. "Huh?"

I smiled into darkness and ruffled her hair. "Sunrises don't just look like your mom. They look like you, too."

Her wiry arms hugged tight around my neck, surprising me a little. Her voice came out small. "Okay, good."

I felt a little bad for it, but I couldn't keep from laughing. Of course. Of course she'd want me to think of her when we watched the sun rise. Of course she'd feel strongly about that.

"Thank you, Daddy," she said.

"Hm? For what?"

Pace settled in my arms and sighed. "Mm, nothing."

I smiled. Pace rested there and watched her reason to get up in the morning fix itself in the sky. I listened to her giggle and mumble to herself, listened to her cracking herself up. This was some of the only light I had left in the darkness. She was _my_ reason to get up. My little sunrise.

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><p><strong>Wow...just wow! {As we said before, Practice4morale is amazing! Be sure to review and let her know how you thought!} <strong>

**And be sure to look out for chapter 12!**


	13. Chapter 12

***peeks out from under rock* Uh…hi?**

**{Yeah, this has been waaaay to overdo….sorry…}**

**BUT! We do have a few excuses… **

**Mainly, Marching Band. Yeah, yeah, I know 'it's only marching band though' well, if you're in a competing band, it's a WHOLE different story. We just went to State champion ships, {Whoo! Fifth in State!} so we'll be having a hella lot more time!**

**Second, my health has been less than satisfactory. I have decided that my immune system seriously hates me.**

**{And finally, if you guys had read the AN from a few days ago, you'd know that I've been going through a really tough time recently, and have been an emotional wreck. Having someone you thought would be there for you until the end stab you in the back is hard, so I've been far from okay} Don't worry guys, I was there for her. **

**And thanks to everyone who's stuck with us for this long!**

**REVIEWS:**

**Mixmax300z: { Thanks for the well wishings, and as I said earlier, Fifth in 4A! whoot} Totally appreciate the your patience and understanding! Cause I mean…goodness…life took a major turn for the hardest for both of us. But no worries! It's finally slowed down, we'll have more time now. Not much, but more time. **

**Practice4morale: {Well… we can't go without a cute papa bear Roy moment ;3 thanks for sticking with us!} Love your story! It was absolutely adorable! Thanks for being so patient with us! **

**DeyaniraSan: {Heh…sorry for the long wait for the dress…But not fear! The dress is reviled now! Elicia is about 23 or 24 now, and of course that she's a kick ass rebellion leader!} As always, I love your reviews. They make me smile even when I'm as…we'll just say sick for lack of a better word…as I am.**

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><p>She was beautiful. No, gorgeous.<p>

Her gown was a pale blue-green and fell in lightly shimmering folds where it brushed the floor. Across her middle large jewels glimmered in the partial light. The jewels rose up her right side, decorating the silky material covering her shoulder, while her left shoulder was left bare. Her smooth face bore little makeup, other than a light silver shadow over her beautiful eyes. Her onyx hair was twisted up in a complicated bun with a few strands that fell in gentle ringlets to frame her face.

Rin held his breath as Pace came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, a gentle smile on her face. As she turned to hug her dad, he could see that the back part covering Pace's shoulders was see through. The jewels from the front of the dress crawled around to the back, twisting across her in a frost like patterns.

Rin felt like was the luckiest guy in the world.

* * *

><p>Rin wore a black suit with a white tie which was very handsome with his now dark eyes. He had blushed harshly when I had come down stairs.<p>

"From what I hear, you must look absolutely beautiful," My dad whispered as he pulled me into a gentle hug, his unfocused eyes sparkling with unshed tears.

"Thank you, daddy," I whispered back, pulling back to gaze up at him, and kiss him on the cheek.

Pulling back I turned to Rin, who was staring at me with a slight look of awe. I caught his eye and smiled, laughing slightly as he stared slightly before offering me his arm.

"Let's get in the car," Roy told us, starting to walk out the door.

But before we could go our mothers attacked us in warm hugs. Rin's mother and sister hugged him tightly as my own mother did the same.

"I'll see you after the ball," Riza whispered in my ear.

When we tore away from our family's our father's came with us. Ed as our driver and Roy as the 'door opener' and Elicia came with us as well.

Rin smiled at me as we exited the building, "You look beautiful."

I blushed as I got into the car, "Thank you. You look pretty sharp yourself."

Once everyone was in the car my father turned around in the front seat, "We have something to do before we take ya to the Ball."

Elicia looked sad, as we turned away from Maliki's Ball. The silence was harsh, a sorrow echoed around the car.

We pulled up at a large gated area, and exited the car, Ed opting to stay with the car. As we entered the large iron gate, I glanced around to see large headstones neatly lined along the pathway, names and dates jumping out of the cool stone. A graveyard.

Walking for a little I held my father's hand to keep him from tripping over the stones before we stopped in front of one stone.

**Maes Hughes**

**1885 – 1914**

"Maes Hughes," I whispered, reading the stone aloud.

"My old friend…" My father muttered.

Elicia knelt down before the stone as my father tilted his head upwards, toward the sky. I went to stand next to him and Rin knelt next to Elicia.

"I should've left him out of the Philosophers Stone business…" My father muttered.

Walking up next to him he put his arm around me and I wrapped my arms around his waist.

"There wasn't much you could have done," I whispered to him.

He shook his head, still tilting his head up, "I could have just told him it was nothing…"

"You know he would have been persistent," I told him, knowing from the stories my father told of Hughes that he would have kept asking.

He said nothing and kept his head up, a single tear snaking its way down his cheek.

Rin, who now had his arm around Elicia's shoulders, was comforting her. Tears streamed down her cheeks, her nose slightly runny.

"I was too young to understand what had happened," She cried into her hands.

"You were…how old?" Rin asked as politely as he could, not knowing that Elicia was just a toddler when she lost her father.

"I was three," Elicia sobbed in response.

Rin wasn't sure what to do from there, so he rubbed her back as she started to calm down. He looked up at me, a sad look in his eyes and I nodded. Knowing what he was thinking. We felt bad for Elicia and Roy, and Ed, and all those who had once been close with Maes. But we mainly felt bad for Elicia. She'd lost her father at such a young age. She probably didn't really remember much about him either.

"Are we ready to go back to the car?" I asked, noting how low the sun had gotten.

Rin nodded, "If we stay any longer we'll be tripping over grave stones in the dark."

My father opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it as we started walking. The sky was turning bright red as the sun took its final glances over the skyline. Almost as if it was trying to warn us of something.

Back in the car we found Ed with red eyes, he'd been crying as well. Roy patted him on the shoulder, but Ed didn't respond to the gesture.

Ed started the car and we took off, the car filled with the silence of sorrow. Rin grabbed my hand and made small circles on the top of my hand with his thumb. Just a small gesture, but it was relaxing.

Elicia took a deep breath as we approached the Ball, "You remember the plan, yes?"

Rin and I nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

As we pulled up to the front of Fuhrer President's place I could feel myself start to worry. So much could go wrong.

"Go on," Elicia told us, "We'll wait here until you're inside."

Rin nodded and Ed opened the door for him as Roy opened the door for me.

"Be safe," My father whispered into my shoulder, hugging me tightly before handing me over to Rin.

I nodded, "Of course."

Rin offered me his arm once more, "Shall we?"

I nodded, looking back at the black car once more, before allowing Rin to pull me off into the night.

The walk up the steps wasn't bad but the doors were heavily guarded. I swallowed hard and tensed.

"Relax, all we have to tell them is our names," Rin whispered to me as we approached the soldiers.

"What's your name?" A tall female soldier asked us gruffly.

Rin smiled, "We are Kyo and Sora Jenkins," He said calmly.

The woman looked up our names on a sort of small computer, looked up at us, and back to the computer.

"Please stand there a moment," She told us, turning to the people who had come up the steps behind us, "Names please."

"Don and Clare Nietzche," The man answered.

The woman didn't bother to look at her computer, "Go ahead."

She turned back to Rin and I, "Your names again, please."

This time I answered, "Kyo and Sora Jenkins."

Finally, she waved us through. I felt like I could breathe again, but my breath was taken once more at the sight of the Ball room.

Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, circle tables covered in fine white cloth circled the dance floor, and a long staircase was on the far side of the Ballroom. Once up the first flight there was a flat spot where an elegant chair sat. That was where Maliki would be.

The room was beautiful, music playing in the background as people twirled away.

We had been watching the dance when the song ended.

I glanced up at the high chair to see a man with brliant green eyes and dark hair wearing a fancified version of the green military uniformsitting there. Not any had noticed his arrival.

Maliki.

I gently nudged Rin, nodding up at Maliki when he glanced at me, "Right…"

Rin turned to me suddenly and bowed, holding his hand out for me to grab.

"May I have this dance?" He asked me, looking up at me.

I gave him my hand, "Yes, you may."

I smiled as he gently pulled me onto the dance floor, various couples around us already twirling gracefully around the dance floor.

Gently I rested my hand onto his shoulder, his large hand resting just below my shoulder. We locked eyes as we started moving, smoothly rotating around the floor.

The music was beautiful. Violins and violas sang out with the bass's and cellos like chocolate in the background. Occasionally the main verse in the song would flip and the bass and cello would have the melody, as the violins and violas sang sweetly to back them up. A shimmering flute song danced above the orchestral sounds, dipping below into the melodies, before again raising above the texture to soar again.

I smiled broadly as Rin let go of my back and spun me around, bringing me back gently and closer to him. My smile infected him. And suddenly, I was lost in his eyes, in his smile, his hair, the way he moved. I couldn't see anyone but him. Blushing harshly I wondered if he was thinking the same thing.

It was magical

He led me around the ball room in wide circles, while going in smaller circles. I started to feel giggly and dizzy. It was in this moment, while twirling around with him, that I realized how much I loved him.

Slowly we came to a stop with the music, as Rin gently lifted me at the waist, twirling slightly.

As the music ended he smiled, "Not bad for just havin' learned, right?"

"That's for sure!" I smiled back. Around us, the couples who were not dancing applauded, causing us to jump, before bowing. I could feel my cheeks redden.

Mid-bow a flicker of movement caught my eye, Maliki was on the move.

"He's on the move!" I whispered to Rin urgently.

Rin nodded and we followed Maliki quickly and quietly up the stairs and down the hallway to the left. Maliki took a sharp right and suddenly we had lost him. Too many doors lined this hallway to know which one Maliki had gone into.

"What now?" Rin whispered.

"Someone's bound to find us if we just stand here…" I muttered back, and, as if on cue, a soldier came through the hallway in front of us.

He seemed to be taken aback by the sight of us, "Hey! What are you two doing up here?" He had shouted.

"I'm sorry sir, we were just looking for the bathrooms and we seem to have gotten lost," I replied in my best innocent voice.

"Well you can't stay here," The soldier sighed, walking closer, "Come on."

"Wait, sir!" Rin panicked.

"What now?" The soldier asked, starting to sound annoyed.

Rin clutched his chest tightly, donning a panicked look, "Can we stay here, I can't handle crowd's very well and I'll panic if I have to go back there right now. Please!"

Still looking annoyed the soldier thought about this, taking in Rin's panicked eyes, "Fine, but only for a little while and I have to stay with you."

Rin nodded and sat down against the wall, motioning for me to follow. We waited until the soldier seemed like he wasn't paying attention to us so that we could talk.

"We have to get away from him," I whispered urgently.

Rin nodded, "I know, but how?"

I sighed, frustrated by the setback, "I dunno! Alchemy?"

"Wouldn't that just prove that Alchemists are dangerous?" He asked in response.

"Gah!" I shouted before I could stop myself.

The soldier whipped around as though my voice were a gun shot, "What's wrong with you?"

"Sorry sir, I just really have to pee, where's the nearest bathroom?" I pleaded, trying to make my voice sound urgent.

The soldier sighed, "Down the hall to the left, last door."

"Thank you!" I exclaimed, scurrying my way down the hallway and to the bathroom.

When I entered the room there was a loud crash followed by a series muffled curse words.

"H-hello?" I stuttered as I turned into the bathroom.

Who stood there shocked me. Fuhrer President Maliki stood in front of the sink, his eyes wide at the sight of me. But…there was something strange about his eyes. They were green, but the slightest circle of red went around his pupil. He wasn't who we'd thought he was.

"You're an Ishvalan!?" I demanded blocking the door so that he couldn't retreat.

He shook his head violently, "N-no I'm not citizen! You're mistaken!"

"But, your eyes are turning red, "I pointed out none too kindly.

He cried in a fit of rage and slammed his fists down onto the counter, at which both the soldier and Rin burst through the door. Maliki's eyes were now fully red.

"He…" Rin had started, but broke off at the sight of Maliki's eyes, "You're Ishvalan…"

"Sir! Why are your eyes red?" The soldier asked, and it was then that I realized that he hadn't known Maliki was an Ishvalan either, he sounded hurt.

"Yes! I'm a fucking Ishvalan! Okay?" Maliki shouted angrily, "Now you know."

"Is that why Alchemists were banished? Because you have a grudge?!" The soldier asked, clearly infuriated, "They're not even dangerous are they?"

"They destroyed my whole civilization!" Maliki cried.

"And then started a rebuilding operation to help the few of you who were left to get back on your feet," Rin pointed out calmly.

Maliki squinted at Rin, "You're one of them aren't you?"

At that the soldier looked at us, "You're Alchemists?"

We nodded, "Yes, we came to see why Alchemists were banished and now we know why. We're not dangerous, we promise! We just want to live together again!"

Maliki shook his head, "No! I refuse to share a country with your kind!"

"Our kind!?" I asked incredulously, "Excuse me Mr. Maliki, but I believe we're just as human as you are!"

"Furthermore," Rin added, "You're able to conceal your eye color, and I guarantee you're doing that with Alchemy!"

The soldier put his head in his hands, "I've been following a lie…"

"No," Maliki whispered, putting his hand gently onto the soldier's shoulder, "You've been following me."

"And what are you?" The soldier snapped, "An Ishvalan Alchemist with a grudge. I thought I was following a Central Commander who saw the danger in Alchemists. But no, you are one. You're more dangerous than these kids! You've lied to an entire country of people!"

Maliki shook his head, "So you've thrown your lot with them?"

The soldier looked Rin and I up and down, "Yes, yes I have." He put out his hand for me to take, "Names Jason, Jason Mead."

I smiled and shook his hand, "Pace Mustang and this is Rin Elric."

Jason stopped shaking my hand, "Mustang as in Roy Mustang, and Elric as in Edward or Alphonse Elric?!"

Rin nodded, his attention on Maliki, "Yeah, yeah. Famous father's and what-not. Change the law."

Maliki shook his head, "Never. You'll rot in my prison."

"Wrong answer," Rin said, clapping his hands.

"Rin no!" I cried, realizing what he was doing, "We don't want to prove him right, do we?"

"No," He said through gritted teeth.

I turned my attention to Maliki, "Please change the law. Believe it or not, life at the brinks of civilization isn't the greatest."

Maliki bared his teeth, "I know."

"So let us, all Alchemists, rejoin society!" Rin shouted.

"Never," Maliki growled in response, making a sudden mad dash for the door.

He broke through us before we'd noticed and ran down the hallway.

As we turned the corner, however, reinforcements were waiting for us.

"Now!" I yelled.

Rin and I clapped our hands and went down, pushing our fists to the wooden floor. Huge, flat pieces of wood flung aside the soldiers as we continued to run after Maliki.

We had reached the stairs and the crowed below was screaming in terror as Maliki flew through them. I ran down the steps as Rin jumped over the railing, landing hard on a table below. Maliki made a mad dash for the door.

"Help me!" He screamed, "Those kids are Alchemists and they're out to kill me!"

And with that said all hell broke loose. People ran around screaming, soldiers shouted as they tried to either calm them down or chase after us, glass shattered with the sound of gun shots, and panic rose.

Rin and I burst through the doors and into the chilly night air, where our father's had laid in wait for Maliki.

Elicia stood behind my father and Ed, "Told you there was no negotiating with him."

It seemed as though we'd won. As though the fight were over. But as we started to close in on Maliki more and more soldiers came from all directions, causing us to direct our attention away from Maliki.

Roy, Ed and Rin were in a tight circle as soldiers over took them. I snapped my fingers wildly, clapping when I could to clear more soldiers than snapping could have. Flames spread everywhere, the ground was in shambles.

"Elicia!" I shouted, trying to find her.

She was with Al, who were making their way out of the crowd. I followed closely, praying that Rin could make it too.

Al, Elicia and I ran until all we could here was the distant sound of sirens and the occasional crash of a vehicle.

"Where are Rin, Roy, and Ed?" Elicia panted, looking behind us as we slowed to see if they were following."

I looked back, praying I'd see them come up, but they never did.

"They'll be okay, right?" I asked Al breathlessly.

"They'll be fine," He reassured me.

We walked the rest of the way back to the apartment where my mother sat in her living room, head down.

"Mom?" I whispered.

She looked up at me, her eyes sad. She shook her head, a single tear falling down her cheek. The look in her eye was all I needed to confirm my worries.

They'd been captured.

* * *

><p><strong>Ugh, not the longest, but it's better than nothing! {true that} <strong>

**{Also, if anyone is truly interested in what Pace's dress looks like, take out the spaces and follow the line below.}**

media-cache-ak0 . pinimg originals/ 8c/b1 /8e/ 8cb18e6c36b4f9d9a63f66447d82f5a5 .jpg

**Please REVIEW!**

**Quote: "If you pretend to feel a certain way, the feeling can become genuine all by accident."**


	14. Chapter 13

**Alright! New chapter! {This must be one of our fastest update times…which is actually kinda sad…but oh well!} **

**Meh…I'm just happy that it's finally thanksgiving break! {YES! Sleeping in and gaining 10 pounds from one night! XD} **

**Alright so there's a lot of POV changes, so bear with us. **

**THANKS TO EVEYONE WHO'S STUCK WITH US FOR SO LONG! **

**REVIEWS:**

**Practice4morale: {As always, thank you so much for your amazing words, and for reviewing. And you have no idea how much fun I had when I was writing the dress description! And I think we had this section planned sense about…uh…chapter 6 ish? } Man! I've missed you guys so much! Hopefully we'll start getting chapters to you regurlarly. **

**Mixmax300: { Our show was a love themed show called "Pursuit of…" it was super fun XD. } We had a blast with our show. You'd be glad to know that neither of us are sick this posting! Unless...Im wrong...**

* * *

><p><strong>Rin<strong>

Roy, Ed, and Rin were in a rather desperate situation. Their wrists were held tightly in two inch metal cuffs, with a stiff metal bar about ten inches in between that prevented them from clapping. There was no way they could get out without alchemy.

Not long after they had been captured, they were thrown into the back of a large military van, where a couple more soldiers sat with loaded guns.

After a tense, silent hour long drive the three of them were roughly pushed out of the van. Rin glanced around to see that they were in a large courtyard, with thick, cement walls all along the perimeter with sharp barbed wire looped along the top. A Jail yard.

The gray cinderblock building stood tall in front of them, even taller watch towers looming above, large search lights circling in seemingly random patters.

The soldiers pushed the trio into the building and down a hallway with smallish cells lining the walls. Most of them occupied with what they assumed were either Alchemist supporters or criminals.

As they continued to walk the soldiers stopped them suddenly at an unoccupied cell and opened the door wide. One of the bigger males shoved Ed into this cell and locked the door quickly.

"Dad!" Rin shouted, beginning to feel frightened.

Ed smiled gently back at Rin, "It'll be okay, Rin."

The soldiers then continued to push Rin and Roy deeper into the jail.

"This one's blind," One of them said quietly to the others.

They seemed to be confused by this, "Should we keep them together? They're clearly not family…"

"Yea, keep 'em together," A rough, yet vaguely familiar voice said.

Turning to see who it was Rin was shocked to see the man who he and Pace had met during their run in with President Maliki. The soldier who had supported the Alchemists, Jason.

Rin turned around quickly when the soliders yanked them to a halt. He had been so distracted by Jason that he hadn't noticed the hallway suddenly turned to the left.

"Would ya watch where you're goin'!" A soldier demanded, pushing Rin to the left angrily.

They continued to walk until they reached two empty cells next to each other. Two soldiers unlocked the doors as Jason stood behind Roy and Rin.

Rin grunted as he was shoved into the cell. He stumbled, before falling to the floor with a painful thud, his leg and shoulder crying out in protest.

Beside him, Roy was thrown towards the bed, causing him to painfully fall onto it.

Jason clearly had a higher rank than the other two soldiers, this becoming apparent when he commanded the others, "Fill out the paperwork to get Elric moved."

The two soldiers nodded silently.

Once the cell was locked the two lower soldiers left Jason.

"I'm sorry about all of this," Jason had started, but Roy cut him off.

"Who the hell are you?" Roy had asked, sitting on the edge of the small bed.

Rin put his hand, still in the metal cuffs, awkwardly onto Roy's shoulder, "This is Jason, Roy. He helped Pace and I escape before we were captured."

Roy nodded, his body relaxing slightly.

"After you left with your girl President Maliki told me that I could keep my position if I told no one that he was Ishvalan…and helped capture you. I truly am sorry," Jason told them, putting his head down in shame.

Rin shrugged, "You did what you had to do."

Roy frowned, "So what're you doing here then?" He asked, almost rudely.

"I still strongly believe that Alchemists were wronged and I want to help you," Jason said sincerely.

There was silence while everyone absorbed what Jason said.

"How can you help us?" Roy asked.

Jason thought a moment, "I'm fairly high up in the ranks, I can get you details about anything you needed. I…uh…I can find your friends."

Roy nodded but said nothing, his gray eyes turned to the ground.

"Just think about it," Jason said before getting up and leaving.

**Ed**

He sat in his cell quietly, listening to the sounds of people. Last time Ed had been in a cell like this he was with his brother in Fort Briggs. As he thought back on this Ed lay back on the little cot, arms raised above his head to accommodate his cuffed wrists.

_How could I let this happen? My own son is in jail with me…Winry is gonna kill me. I wonder how long it'll be until we get out of here…Could I have prevented this? _

It was getting quieter, people around him falling asleep with the time of night.

Idly he wondered how Rin was doing, and if they were going to put him and Roy near each other.

Rin. Ed felt an iron ball of guilt grow in his throat. The poor boy must be terrified. _I should have never gotten him pulled into this. It's all my fault. All he wanted to do was meet his mother, and now look at where he is. Winry's going to kill me. _

With that he started thinking about Winry. _If Rin and Pace succeed with this…I could finally marry her. I could finally have a real wedding. I could spend the nights laying with her instead of just thinking about her…I could show her the love she deserves all the time…instead of once a year. God, that'd be nice. She's put up with a lot for me…_

With that as his last thought Ed drifted off, a single tear drifting its way down his cheek.

* * *

><p><strong>Roy<strong>

Roy was sleeping fitfully, tossing and turning with a nightmare. Sweat beading on his forehead, hands clamping down and releasing, muscles tightening. It was rare now-a-days for Roy to dream with images, and when he did those images were often blurred, but tonight they were vivid...

_Explosions shook the air around him. _

_Sand and dust clogged his lungs. _

_Glaring desert sun shined brightly in his eyes._

_ The rancid smell of burning flesh filled his nose. _

_Ishval. _

_He was running through the maze of clay housing, Walkers, Jackson, and Markson following close behind. _

_Snap. Whoosh. Screams. _

_"Major! More of rebels at 10 O'clock!" Walkers called out, causing Roy to grit his teeth, his right hand snapping to send a controlled blast of flames at the said rebels. _

_Somewhere in the back of his mind Roy blocked out the smell of newly burnt flesh. _

_Quickly Roy darted into a door way, as the sound of gunfire filled the air, the other three soldiers following him closely. _

_The group sank down against different walls, listening to the continued gunfire, catching their breath. Roy glanced at the faces of some of his closest friends, having met them in the Academy. _

_"God Damn it," Markson grunted, slamming his fist against the ground. "Why are we doing this?!"_

_"All those innocent people," Jackson leaned his head back, his once youthful face looking twenty years older. _

_Roy grit his teeth, "We just need to end this as soon as possible." _

_"Major…Roy…" Walkers looked at Roy with haunted eyes. "I just want to go back to my wife and baby girl."_

_Roy turned to answer, only to be interrupted by a gray mass was flung through the glassless window above his head. _

_He felt his eyes widen, just as a loud hissing filled the air. "GET OUT! IT'S A BO–"_

_pain_

_Pain_

Pain

PAIN

_Crushing weight pressed down on him. _

_He could feel the stream of blood running down his face._

_He struggled to breath, from a few clearly broken ribs, and the thick dust filling the air._

_"Roy!" Distantly, he heard a familiar voice call out, sounding slightly panicked. "Mustang! Walkers! Jackson! Markson! If any of you can hear me, help us find you!"_

_He struggled to answer, to call out, as the rubble shifted above him. Soon the rubble moved away, reviling Hughes' frantic face. "Roy!"_

_He had been the only one to survive the explosion._

* * *

><p><strong>Rin<strong>

He awoke to the sound of clashing metal on hard floors. Sitting up frantically, Rin panicked slightly before remembering what had happened the day before.

Sitting up, Rin shuffled to a small barred window, the only way to see into the cells next to them. He felt relief blossom in his chest, at the sight of his father in the cell next to his, to the right. Ed was sprawled on the floor, looking disorientated. He had clearly just been woken up to be thrown in a new cell.

"Dad," Rin whispered, pressing against the small window.

"Rin?" Ed glanced around the dark cell, before catching sight of his son through the small window. "Rin! Are you all right? Where's Roy? They haven't hurt you have they?"

"Dad," Rin felt his voice go slightly thick, he hadn't realized just how terrified he had been. "I'm fine, they haven't hurt me, and Roy's here in the cell with me."

Ed's eyes softened as he pushed his fingers though the bars to touch Rin. "Okay…"

Rin leaned into the touch, closing his eyes.

**§§§**

_I wonder how Pace is doing… _Rin thought sadly after a while, looking down at the ground to find a metal tray with rather pathetic looking oatmeal in two bowls. In all reality, it wasn't much different than the stuff they'd been fed in Pisu so Rin was sadly used to it. But it still doesn't taste that great. It was terrible trying to eat with stiff metal cuffs.

It smelled of human waste and BO. Overall, not pleasant.

Grabbing the two cold bowls, Rin walked over to where Roy lay there on the cot, eyes closed. Not sleeping, but listening.

"Roy," Rin waited until the pale gray eyes opened and Roy sat up, before pressing the bowl into one of his hands.

With a glance through the small cell, Rin could see his father where he sat on his cot, head in hands through the little window. I wondered what he was thinking about. Did he feel guilty? Did he miss Winry and Trisha?

"Hey, Roy?" Rin whispered, slipping over to sit on the floor next to his cot, Roy's empty bowl sitting next to him on the cot, his eyes closed again.

"Yes?" He answered without opening his eyes.

Rin looked down, twiddling my thumbs, "When do you think we'll get out of here?"

He opened his eyes and sat up, hands dangling from his chunk of metal, "I think we'll get out of here when it's time."

**§§§**

Rin sighed softly, lifting his cuffed hands up and above his head.

He was laying on the floor of the cell, on a thin blanket, while Roy had lay back down on the cot. From the slow and steady rise and fall of his chest, Rin guessed that he had fallen asleep. It had been about an hour sense that mushy meal had been given to them, meaning that it would be sometime in the late evening.

Suddenly, the silence that had fallen was broken by heavy footsteps. A couple of large soldiers came to a stop in front of their cell.

"Get the young one," The smallest of the group commanded, clearly the one with the highest rank.

The soldiers opened the door with, causing Roy to wake with a start, "Wha–?"

"Shut up and go back to sleep, old man," the main soldier sneered, loudly releasing the safety on the gun he held. Roy froze.

Rin let out a grunt as the other two soldiers yanked him to his feet.

"What? What do you want from me?" Rin protested, panic and terror growing in his chest as the two soldiers pulled him out of his cell. They had a tight grip on both his arms.

"You'll see, brat," the leader sneered again, as they continued to yank him roughly down the halls.

The rest of the walk way held in tense silence, as Rin tried to memorize the path. _Right, left, left, right, down two sets of stairs, left, left, room on the right. _

The room that they had entered was small, with a thick iron door, and no windows. On opposite sides of the room a length of chain was anchored to the wall, ending in wide metal cuffs. The far end of the wall was shrouded in rather erie shadows.

Rin was given little time to notice all of this, because the moment they stepped into the room, Rin was roughly spun around and forced to his knees. The cuffs on his wrists were released, and his arms forced to be extended.

He grunted as the cuffs at the ends of the chains were tightly clamped around his wrists, forcing his arms to stay extended.

"Well, well…Terrin Elric."

Rin tensed, at the sound of his name.

"And just how do I know this? Hmn…" the cold voice chuckled darkly, as a cool metal blade pressed against his throat. "We were able to find that we were missing an annoying blond brat back in your hometown…and low and behold, here he is…"

The blade slowly trailed down Rin's neck, only pressing hard enough for him to feel as it came to a rest at the collar of the rough cotton shirt that he was forced to change into when they had first gotten to the prison. The knife pulled away only long enough for rough hands to grab at the hem of the shirt and pull it up to stay bunched at his upper chest.

Again the knife came back, only this time it was along Rin's face, drifting from cheek to cheek.

"Now, it was also reported that you left with a little friend…obviously you know where she is…" Rin grunted as the knife slid through the skin on his cheek, causing a line of blood to well.

"No." Rin hissed. He'd never sell out Pace.

"Oh? Trying to act the hero?" the cold voice snapped, as a surprisingly thin man stepping out in front of him.

The man had a cruel sneer on his thin face, his long nose crooked, from being broken once or twice before. He had long brown hair pulled back to sit on the nape of his neck, pulled tight to show his receding hairline, and large forehead. He held a long silver knife, with a streak of red along the blade, Rin's blood.

"Well…let's see just see how long you'll keep up that thought," He grinned nastily, reaching into his pocket to pull out a small metal device, that when flicked open, reviled a flame. A lighter.

* * *

><p><strong>PACE<strong>

The morning after the ball we had just about everybody in Riza's tiny apartment. Scar, Elicia, Alphonse, Olivia, Brenda, Feury, Winry, Riza, and I sat or stood around the living room, worry evident on each of their faces.

"Ed, Roy, and Rin were captured…" I told them, with an audible gasp echoing around the room following this troubling news.

"How?" Olivia asked blatantly.

"We were chased out after Maliki found out we were Alchemists…" I muttered.

Winry shook her head, "We told you he wouldn't listen."

"But there's something you don't know about Maliki!" I started, "He's an Ishvalan!"

Feury raised his eyebrows, "What leads you to say this?"

"Because his eyes aren't blue. They're red. And because he admitted!" I answered.

At that there was shocked silence. No one was ready for that information.

Olivia stood hands on her hips, her face determined, "Well…instead of sitting here doing nothing, let's make a plan to get them out!"

I nodded with everyone else, determination welling up inside me, before a thought came to mind, "But, where are they going to be taken?"

There was a moment of silence, as everyone thought out my question.

The moment of silence was broken by the sound of the doorbell, causing the entire room to freeze. We looked from one to each other, before most of the resistance moved to hide, and Riza went down the hall to open the door.

"How can I help you?" Riza's voice came out from the hall, followed by a familiar voice.

"Are you Miss Riza Mustang?" the voice asked.

"Y-yes…how can I help you?" Suddenly I remembered the voice, as the voice from the soldier from the ball.

"Jason?" I called, quickly moving to the hall to see the soldier standing in the doorway, looking different in civilian clothes .

"It's you!" Jason's eyes brightened slightly.

"What are you doing here?" I asked suspiciously, noticing my mom moving to the small table by the door, to get to the hidden gun there.

"I want to help you." Jason gestured at the bag he held over his shoulder. "I know where they're holding your boyfriend."

I blushed slightly at the word boyfriend but shook it off, "And how do I know that you won't just betray us?"

"My grandfather was an alchemist," Jason sighed, before glancing around the hallway. "May I come inside? This isn't the kind of thing we should be discussing out in the open like this…"

Riza glanced back at me, waiting for my nod, before allowing him in.

We went back into the living room, where the rest of the resistance had come out of hiding.

There was a tense silence as Jason explained how he was trustworthy, and how he wanted to help them.

"They're three of the most dangerous alchemist in the nation…they'd have to be taken Bridgestone Prison," Jason said, as they got back on the topic of saving Ed, Roy and Rin.

"Bridgestone is the highest security prison in all of the nation…" Riza said softly. "and it's about ten miles outside of Central."

"And I happen to be a pretty high person there," Jason sighed, opening his bag and pulling out a pile of papers. "I was hoping that I'd be able to find you, so I grabbed some copies of the floor plans."

We gathered around the coffee table where Jason placed the papers and listened intently as everyone took turns describing how the mansion was laid out and slowly but surely figured out exactly what we had to do in order to get Rin, Roy, and Ed out of jail.

* * *

><p><strong>ED<strong>

When Ed woke from the rather involuntary nap, Rin was gone, leaving Roy in his cell alone.

"Where did Rin go?" He asked Roy, concerned.

Roy walked over to Ed's voice, "Some soldiers took him…I wanted to stop them, but they had guns…"

That only confirmed Ed's fears.

"He's only a boy, Ed. They can't do much to him without there being some repercussions." Roy told him, trying to make him feel better.

With that the two left each other alone, although they both sat next to the windows, each engrossed in his own thoughts.

_I, have left my son to defend for himself against the military. I, have left my wife and daughter once again to live without me. I, have gotten us captured. I, am the one at fault here. I, have gotten Roy planted in a cell. _I feel terrible.

Ed stiffly stood, numbly walking to the cot. Climbing up, Ed sighed, curling on the thin blanket.

"_If there's a God up there, please keep my son safe…"_

* * *

><p><strong>ROY<strong>

It was a few hours later when Roy heard the alarming sound of two people dragging a third between then. Ed gasped in shock from beside him, as the footsteps passed by his door. A moment later the footsteps stopped in front of his cell, and he heard the warning click of a gun, silently warning Roy not to try anything. Rin let out a grunt of pain, as he was thrown roughly into the cell, and the door slammed close with a screech of metal.

Rushing to where he lay Roy listened to his breathing. It was fast and shallow, a sign of pain. With that in mind, Roy ghosted his hands gently over the boy's body. He was covered in small cuts and his wrists were both bloody messes. Gently pulling at Rin's shirt Roy winced as the smell of burnt flesh invaded his nose.

"Rin!" Ed cried in that desperate 'I want to help my child' fatherly voice.

Rin only moaned in response.

Roy could easily hear the tears and pure rage in Ed's voice, "What'd they do to you?"

"They…beat me…when I…I wouldn't…tell them where….Pace was…" Rin panted, quietly moaning. "they…they had a…a knife…and, and lighter…"

Roy stood and walked over to where Ed's voice was coming from.

"They beat, cut, and burned him when he wouldn't tell them where Pace was…" I told him in a hushed voice.

Again, Roy could feel his anger like it was something tangible.

"YOU BASTARDS!" He shouted, running out to the bars on the door, "YOU WOULD BEAT A CHILD!?"

"Ed!" Roy shouted at him, trying to calm him down

"COME FIGHT ME AND PICK ON SOMEONE YOUR OWN SIZE!"

"ED! YOU'RE NOT HELPING!" Roy yelled.

There was a moment of silence before Roy heard Ed hit the ground, his hands slapping onto his face, "I couldn't protect him…I've failed…"

"No," Roy told him, carfully moving back to where Rin was, "You didn't fail. You couldn't have known that's what they were going to do."

Gently, Roy touched Rin's shoulder, "Rin, I'm going to help you to the cot, okay?"

Rin's breath caught for a moment, before he slowly reached out to clutch at Roy's sleeve.

As gently as he could with his wrists still cuffed Roy lifted Rin, carrying him slowly across the cell until his foot caught the edge of the cot.

Slowly he set the poor boy on the stiff bed, wincing when he let out a soft cry of pain.

"R-Right…left, left…r-r-right… down two…left…left…room right," Roy tilted his head in confusion from the broken words from the boy, but decided to remember just in case.

"Rin…my poor Terrin…" Ed let out a soft sob, helpless to do anything.

* * *

><p><strong>PACE<strong>

I paced the living room aimlessly. I had a terrible feeling, something had gone wrong. Rin was hurt, and I could feel it.

"Pace…" My mother said, grabbing my shoulders, "Stop…"

"But mom…I gotta do something! Rin's hurt!"

She shook her head, "You don't know that…"

"Grahh!" I grunted, frustrated.

"Honey, you can't keep doing this. You have to eat. You have to sleep. You're not helping them if you deteriorate."

I looked up at her and fell to my knees, "I just feel like it was my fault they were captured…"

"Pace, look at me," My mother whispered, kneeling in front of me.

Tears stung in my eyes but I looked up at her. Her eyes were kind and forgiving, a frown on her lips. She sat there for a minute before saying anything.

"This isn't your fault. You couldn't have done anything. There were too many soldiers for you to fight off by yourself. Don't blame yourself."

With that, the tears spilled over my cheeks. My mother wrapped me in a hug, my face on her shoulder.

"I know, Baby Girl, I know," She muttered, and that only made me cry harder. My father called me baby girl all the time.

Eventually, I calmed down enough to think clearly. I still sat on the floor, embraced by my mother. She had a large wet spot where my eyes had been on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," I muttered, my nose stuffy.

"No, no. It's okay." She told me understandingly, standing, "Let's get something to eat, shall we?"

I nodded, finally realizing how hungry and tired I was.

After eating two bowls of noodles and three slices of bread I decided I'd go sleep for a while. A nap sounded great. Elicia and all of them would be by later tonight and we'd discuss a plan to bust Rin, Roy, and Ed out of jail.

* * *

><p><strong>WINRY<strong>

Winry sat on the couch, staring at the white wall in front of her. Trisha lay on the floor staring at the ceiling.

"Mom…" Trisha said, "I'm hungry."

Winry didn't move or say anything, it was as though she was just frozen there. Frozen in shock and fear and dread.

Trisha stood, but still her mother didn't move. So she went to make herself something to eat, making something for Winry at the same time. All Trisha knew how to make was sandwiches so they had a ham and cheese sandwich.

She left her mother's sandwich on the coffee table in front of her and told her to eat, but still she didn't move. It was like she'd just shut down.

* * *

><p><strong>PACE<strong>

Here we are again, everyone gathered in my mother's living room

"Are we ready?" Olivia asked, standing in front of us once again.

We looked around at each other, mentally going through the plan, and nodded. We were all dressed in black clothing, and had various weapons hidden.

"Then let's head out!" She said, swinging the door open.

As we approached the Prison, we split up. Olivia, Scar, and Riza would take the front door, Elicia and I would take the back door, and Brenda and Feury would take the side doors.

For a prison, it felt like it lacked guards. There was one standing at the back door and he was asleep so we just kind of walked on by him.

"Well…" I muttered quietly to Elicia, "That was easy."

She shook her head, "Never say that…"

And as though she had been foreshadowing, two soldiers turned the corner in front of them.

"Shit…" I head Elicia mumble under her breath as she looked around frantically.

I felt frozen, like I couldn't move. The soldiers caught sight of us and started running and yelling at us.

"Hey, you! You aren't supposed to be in here!"

And then I could hear the realization in their voices, they knew who we were.

"Stop! You're under arrest!" They shouted.

Elicia shoved me, "Do something!"

I snapped out of my stupor. Looking around I tried to figure something out. I didn't want to harm the soldiers, but I didn't want them to hurt us either. Clapping, I pushed my hands into the metal bars and starred at a spot closer to where the soldiers were. Right there, the bars bent to grab them, holding them up against the rest of the metal bars.

"Hey!" They screamed, enraged, "You can't do that!"

We paid them no attention and we just ran past them. We took a left and passed a few cells with prisoners in them. Each of them seemed too depressed to even notice we were there.

I could feel my excitement grow as we got deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of cells. But I could also feel my dread building. What if they were hurt? What if they weren't here? So many things could go wrong.

Elicia and I quickened our pace, walking slightly faster but not so fast that we couldn't see who was in the cells.

But then, I caught sight of Ed. He sat by the door, head resting on his thick metal shackles, shoulders shaking. He was crying.

"Ed!" I shouted, trying to get his attention.

He looked up, shocked, "Pace? Elicia? What are you guys doing?"

"Saving you, Uncle," Elicia smiled, quickly going to the door to pick the lock. .

Ed put his head down again and I could see my dad rush to the door next to Ed's cell.

"Pace! Is that you?" He asked, he was also locked in thick metal cuffs that prevented him from clapping.

"Yes, Daddy, it's me!" I smiled broadly, running up to him to take his hand through the bars, before quickly clapping and transmutating the bars.

My dad was quick to pull me into a crushing hug that I gladly returned.

"Now this isn't a time for happy reunions," Roy said, as I pulled away to fix the bars back into place and help Elisia with Ed's lock.

"Where's Rin?" I asked, glancing around.

Looking back at my dad I was shocked to see a pained look on his face.

"They took him…" Ed's voice was shockingly broken. "back to that torture room…"

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><p><strong>Well…that was eventful…<strong>

** {I almost feel bad for hurting poor Rin again…Oh well! }**

**It was YOUR idea… **

**{True, I am evil XD}**

**And as always REVIEW!**

**Quote: "The world's not perfect, but it's there for us trying the best it can. That's what makes it so damn beautiful."**


	15. Chapter 14

**Alright! chapter 14 already!**

**{yay! Now all I need is my flute audition to be over with . } Ah you'll do great Silv!**

**Anyway, thanks to everyone who's stuck with us for this long!**

**REVIEWS:**

**Mixmax300 - {thanks for your review! and don't worry more daddy!Roy and Ed to come soon! } Haha. We both love daddy moments. Plus, the make us feel not so guilty.**

**Practice4morale - {as always your amazing review is greatly appreciated! and I found that last chapter was definitely one of my favorites} Definitely a favorite. And thank you for the amazing comments. We love hearing how others think ans feel about our writing.**

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><p>Torture room? No…surely I've just misheard Ed…Rin can't be in a torture room…<p>

"What do you mean…?" I asked him, falling to my knees in front of where he sat on the other side of the bars.

Ed shook his head, tears falling down his cheeks, "They've hurt him so badly…"

Roy spoke there, "Rin had muttered directions before he was taken again…I know them."

"Then we have to go get him!" I shouted, standing quickly.

"Pace, hold on. Let's think this through for a minute," Elicia frowned looking over at me, "Why do you think they'd torture Rin?"

I thought a moment... "Just to be cruel.." I muttered angrily.

Elicia shook her head, "No, they'd need a reason. They want information from him."

Roy nodded, "They wanted to know where you were…he didn't tell them anything…"

"And my boy suffered for it…" Ed frowned, "So much blood and burning…."

I didn't want to push for further details, but I guessed it had something to do with fire.

"We need to find a way to get him out of here…" Elicia mumbled.

"Then let's go!" I nearly shouted, clapping my hands and pushing my palms against Ed's cell door. The metal bars bent to the sides, allowing him to escape.

We stood there and waited for somebody to move.

"Lead the way then…" Elicia said, giving Roy a little push at which he glared back at her, "Oh…right…Pace! Help your father lead the way."

"Hold on!" Ed shouted, "Don't you think this would be easier for us if Roy and I weren't in these metal cuffs?" Ed lifted his linked hands up, the skin rubbed raw from the rough metal.

I nodded and looked at my fathers cuffs for a way to remove them without hurting them. Lucky for us, there was a little pad lock that I could easily transmutate allowing for the easy removal of them.

After that was done I grabbed my dad by the hand as he relayed the instructions.

"Right!"

We took the closest right and that lead us down a hall with cells that were mostly empty except for one or two of them.

"Left, and another left!"

Those lefts took us down a more populated area of the jail, but these people didn't look like criminals. They looked like regular citizens who were in cells. They must've been alchemist supporters.

"Right…"

This right took us to a stair case.

"Um…what now?" I asked my father, trying to figure out if we should have hit stairs or if we'd taken a wrong turn somewhere.

"Rin said down two…where are we?" He asked in response.

It clicked after a moment, "Down two sets of stairs. Okay, let's keep going!"

Everyone nodded and followed closely, trying not to get caught.

"Next two lefts."

Those next two lefts were no longer hallways filled with cells, but white walls covered with doors. The doors had labels on them, most of them names of people who must've been in charge of the prison.

"Room on the right…"

The last left held a short hallway with one door on the right and two on the left. .

After glancing back at the others, I kicked at the door, causing it to crash open.

The sight that greeted us shocked us all.

Rin knelt on the floor facing the doorway, his arms forced outwards by thick metal chains and cruel looking cuffs. His shirt had been torn off, leaving the multiple cuts and burns marring his chest out to the open air. His head was down, causing a shadow to fall across his face.

Just as the door had burst open, the tall man with thin blond hair and cruel face swung down his arm, which held a long braided leather whip. The leather came down hard onto Rin's back with a crack, causing him to grunt softly, his shoulders straining as he struggled to pull away.

"Rin!" I cried, running forward to gently hug him, the same time that Ed cried in a blind rage. "GET AWAY FROM MY SON!"

Ed launched over the chain to attack the man in a blind rage, a loud crack sounding at the impact of Ed's fist on the man's nose.

"P-pace?" Rin muttered softly, slowly lifting his head to revile glazed golden eyes, his voice was hoarse. Something in the back of my mind processed that they had changed back, but his hair was still dark.

"Yes, Rin, it's me…" I felt tears burn my eyes, as I gently cupped his battered face, mentally wincing at the sight of the ugly bruises and nasty cuts. Blood was streaming down his face from a large cut along his forehead.

I gently pressed a kiss to Rin's sweaty forehead, before pulling away to inspect his injuries. His chest was covered multiple shallow cuts, many of which looked like they had been burned closed. Along with all of the cuts, there was also multiple burns, some looking a day or two old, and others looking fresh. Both of his wrists were bloody messes, clearly from Rin's struggles.

While I did this my dad had quickly started to transmutate the chains away from the walls, allowing Rin to lower his arms with a groan. He swayed for a moment, before falling forward. I was quick to catch him, gently lowering him down into my lap.

As he leaned forward into me, I felt rage bubble up in my stomach, at the sight of his bloodied back. Rin's back was ripped to shreds, with only a few strips of skin still intact.

"P-Pace," he choked out, struggling to sit up.

"Shhh…I'm here now," I stroked his hair, calming him a little.

His pain glazed eyes pinched close, as my dad gently pulled the metal away from his bloodied wrist.

"Hang in there, Rin," I whispered softly, causing his lip to twitch up into a small smile, before frowning in pain once again.

My dad was kneeling down beside me having finished pulling the chains from Rin's wrists. His large hands gently ghosted over Rin's battered body, the frown on his face deepening, "He needs a doctor…soon."

Elicia frowned, "Every hospital in the State will have been warned not to serve alchemists. They'd be on the lookout for you guys."

"Shit!" Ed screamed, "Goddamnit! I just want to help my son!"

"Fullmetal, shut it," Roy snapped, "You're not helping Rin by screaming. You're not helping by just standing there. Didn't you study healing alchemy in Xing?"

It was like a light had come on inside him, "Yes…yes I did."

"Then can't you help your son?" I heard Jason whisper from behind me.

Startled I turned to see him, "Jason!"

"Hey, Pace," Jason smiled sadly, he looked worse for wear, with a black eye and split lip.

"Who are you?" Ed asked, standing aggressively.

I reached up to grab Ed's hand, "Don't worry, he's a friend."

"How much of a friend?" Ed asked angrily.

"He helped Rin and I to escape before you guys were captured. He's loyal to Alchemists." I told him, trying to urge him to stand down.

Jason nodded, putting his hands in the air, "I just want to help you. If you can heal him, I'd love to watch…and now I'm officially a traitor of the nation." He added with a wiry smile.

"How?" I asked, knowing that he was planning on keeping undercover, in order to keep his family safe.

"I guess it's not good to punch your commanding officer in the face," he smiled bitterly. "But it let a couple of your friends get away."

Ed nodded, understanding that he meant no harm. He knelt once more next to Rin.

"Lay him down on his stomach…" Ed told me, helping me flip him over.

Rin grunted and moaned as we turned him over and I wanted to kiss him and tell him he'd be okay. But instead I stroked his hair, matted to his head with sweat.

Rin looked around, "I need chalk…"

Jason handed him a stick of chalk from his pocket.

Ed looked at him in suspicion.

"We're required to carry chalk here, in case we need to mark something," Jason told him, kneeling down behind me.

Ed quickly drew a circle around Rin. Occasionally he'd have Jason and me lift his shoulders off the ground so he could get underneath him or lift his legs. Once he was happy with his transmutation circle he nodded.

"Back away now, out of the circle…" Ed told his, motioning for us to get back.

We did as we were told as we watched Ed. He took a deep breath in, clapped his hands, and pushed them into the ground at the edge of the circle.

A bright flash of light sprouted and grew from the lines, minorly blinding us.

When the light subsided we could see the beads of sweat on Ed's face, and the hopeful look in his eyes.

Rin…still lying on the ground twitched slightly. His back was a thousand times better than it had been. They were no longer bleeding, leaving about half of the wounds open, while the rest were scars.

Roy ran his hands over Rin's back to feel the progress himself.

"Way to go, Ed." Roy nodded, smiling, "We can move him now."

Ed smiled, "I helped…"

Rin was still incredibly weak after all the torture he'd endured and even though he was awake he was falling in and out of consciousness, and was extremely weak. He could barely walk. Ed and I were on either side of him, supporting his weight with Elicia leading my father.

We ran back the way we came, Rin stumbling in between us. On our way back we found the rest of our group, except Brenda and Feury – who Jason had helped earlier – and we headed out. Jason following us closely, trying to keep people off our trail.

Riza took over leading Roy and Elicia ran beside Scar.

As we ran out of the jail the sirens blared behind us. The sound of soldiers frantically trying to find us filled the air along with the cries of the others in their cells. It was unbelievable how quickly they responded. Instantly it seemed like.

"They're getting away!" I heard someone shout as the sound of running feet got closer.

Suddenly, at the sound of that one phrase, at least two dozen soldiers were stampeding out of the prison. And as fast as we were going, they were faster.

They surrounded us, guns in hand and pointed at all of us.

"Shit…" I heard my dad mutter.

I looked around desperately, trying to find a way for us to get out. But we were surrounded completely.

Ed looked at me, "Can you take Rin?"

I nodded, allowing Ed to shift the rest of Rin's weight to my shoulders, his arms draped across mine so that I could grab his wrists.

"I…love…you…" I heard Rin breathe into my ear.

At that I almost cried. Even after he'd been tortured for me, he still cared for me enough to tell me he loved me. Even if we're in the direst of situations, he still loved me…

But I didn't have time to think of that right now. Ed, Roy, and Riza were planning something and I had to know what it was.

"Elicia, Pace, and Rin have to get out of here…" Scar whispered.

They were walking in circles around us, protecting us.

However, they didn't have very much time to figure out a plan before the soldiers attacked. They rushed in on us, shooting their guns.

My father and Ed clapped, bring up a barrier between us and them. Rin, Elicia and I were at the center and everyone else was outside that barrier.

Rin put more of his weight on me, he was slipping little by little.

"Elicia," I said urgently, "Can you take Rin? I have to help…"

Elicia nodded, getting closer to me so that she could take Rin from my shoulders.

And, with that, I burst out of the barrier. Automatically there was the smell of burning flesh burning my nostrils and the sight of more soldiers pouring out of the jail. My father fought by my mother, her shooting and him clapping and snapping. Occasionally you'd hear her of the roar of gun fire shouting out directions for my father to send his flame alchemy towards. Scar and Ed fought alone, but side by side,. They had a system needless to say. Somewhere in the back of my mind I guessed that the two had developed the system when they had worked together to revive the Ishvalens.

I was now a target. Soldiers who spotted me ran towards me and I snapped, closing my eyes so that I didn't have to see their burning. But I could hear their cries, the screams of agony.

Nobody noticed my entrance into the battle except the soldiers that I fired down.

Snapping again, turned to see a soldier lunge at me, knife raised, only to be thrown back by large rock fist. Turning, I was shocked to see Rin leaning around the barrier, his hands pressed firmly to the ground. He was sweating and pale, but conscious. We connected eyes for a spit second, before I twisted to send another wave of flames at few soldiers.

The sound of a cars motor cut through the gun fire and shouts, but nobody paid it any mind. Not until it got louder and louder and didn't seem to quit did the soldiers cease fire.

The vehicle pulled to a stop right outside the circle of battle, the engine cutting off, and everybody's attention was on the driver-side door.

Ed smiled as the door opened to reveal none other than, Alphonse Elric.

"Sorry I'm late everyone," Al told us all, bowing teasingly at one of the soldiers.

"He's one of them!" I heard someone shout.

All hell broke loose. Guns fired, people screamed, flames grew.

But something went wrong…my dad got separated from my mother and was trying to fight, but was failing. My mother was trying desperately to get back to him, but there was no way she was getting past the soldiers.

I felt frozen, unable to move as I watched my father get cut down. He jerked as he was shot in the shoulder and dropped to his knees. The soldiers kicked him when he was down and I could just imagine his ribs snapping. And, when they'd decided they'd had enough one of the soldiers got down on his next to my father and pulled a knife out of his boot. Smiling meanly he flipped my father onto his back and he pressed the knife into my father's stomach.

I lost it. Rage filled me and I snapped and clapped in a blind rage. I could no longer hear the screams of soldiers or smell their blood and burning flesh. All I knew was anger.

Nobody stopped me, they watched in either fear or awe as I went on, cutting down soldiers until only a few remained.

When I reached my father I stopped and knelt down, grabbing my fathers hand, before clapping and creating a similar barrier from before.

The battle continued to rage around us and we were quickly being overtaken. Soldiers isolated us and were pushing in.

"We need to get out of here!" Al screamed at me, from his place besides the barrier Rin was behind.

I nodded, looking over towards the car.

Al was busy fighting and so was everyone else until suddenly, a there was a disturbance

Suddenly another, larger vehicle pulled up, driving right into the midst of the battle. There were yells from both sides of the fight as people jumped out of the way of the large van.

It skid to a stop just by our barrier, and the side door flew open, reviling Brenda, with Fuerny sitting in front of the wheel.

"Get in!" Brenda called.

Quickly I pulled my dad into the van, Riza throwing herself in after finally breaking through the large group of soldiers.

"Go! I'll go with Al and help with Rin!" I yelled, sliding the door shut, despite Riza's protests.

Turning, I saw that the only ones left were Al, Ed, Scar, Jason and me.

"Rin!" I called, seeing that he was climbing in the car, as Scar fought a path through the soldiers, Rin hanging limply on Ed's back. .

Quickly I ran over, snapping occasionally to fend off soldiers.

When all of us had piled into the car we speed off. Jason sat on the ground at my feet, supporting Rin's lower end while he lay on his side, his head on my lap.

I lay my head gently on top of his, "I'm so sorry…" I whispered to him.

I could feel his arms tighten around my legs as he shook his head slightly. He was telling me not to be sorry.

The rest of the car ride was quiet and tense. All of us praying that we wouldn't be followed.

"Where do we go now?" Al asked, after we had driven well out of the main Central streets.

"…Nelly's." Ed glanced back at Rin, who had passed out. "We contacted them a while ago…they said that they had moved and are staying outside of Eastern Central."

"The others would know where to go, right?" I ask anxiously, my dad's injuries flashing in my mind's eye.

"Riza knows that they've moved…she'll know to go there," Ed nodded.

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><p><strong>{Alright!}<strong>

**So this chapter is a little bit shorter, but it was a quicker update! **

**{Thanks for reading! And as always, PLEASE REVIEW! } lol you sound likea a YouTube person {lol!}**

**Congrats to Practice4morale for getting not only the correct quote for last chapter but also the funny part right after! XD**

**Quote: "That's not possible. With your ability you couldn't even make my knees touch the ground. "**


	16. Chapter 15

**{WELL...it's been a while . we're really sorry...}**

**Let's just say that we've both been stupidly busy. {Collage sucks...and we're not even in it yet! UGH!}**

**As Silvy here so gracefully put it...we've been swamped with Collage application stuff, Scholarship stuff, regular school stuff, and general busyness. AND on top of that, I've had a pretty hellish time dealing with my body. I had to get my tonsils removed over Winter Break and needless to say...stuff went wrong. I now have a 'cleft pallet' situation that has to be corrected with yet another surgery. We're working on it...but they said that my situation was a one in a million chance of happening...so they weren't quite sure what to do at first. They have a plan now...but apparently life just enjoys screwing me over. Haha. On top of that I had to get allergy tested...only to find out I'm basically allergic to the outside world. LOL. Lovely right?**

**{On the bright side, I got a new laptop! My first personal laptop, meaning that I shouldn't be going through all the computer problems that I've had before...including deleting all of the work that I had on this chapter_-_ YAY! }**

**Thank you to everyone who's had the patients to keep following and reading this story!**

**REVIEWS! Mixmax300 - {Not to worry! Plenty more cuteness to come!}**

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><p>When we reached Nelly's new place it was about the same size only slightly longer. It was a light blue with a little porch and a hanging swing. Nelly was waiting for us when we got there, standing on the porch with her arms crossed as she watched the car pull up behind the previous on.<p>

I opened the door and she called out, "They told us you wouldn't be far behind."

Ed and I grabbed Rin as gently as possible. Some of his wounds were tearing open again and had started bleeding. Jason, Ed, and Riza followed us quickly as Nelly ushered us into their new house.

"Follow me quickly," Nelly told Ed and I, motioning for us to go up the stairs with her.

We nodded and followed quickly. Most of the doors on this level were open, but there was one closed and I assumed that's where my father was.

Nelly turned left at the third door down, "Lay 'im down on the bed there…my husband will see 'im when he's done with Roy."

After laying Rin down on the bed gently on his stomach we exited the room.

"When can I see my father?" I turned to ask Nelly as she closed Rin's door quietly.

She shook her head, "I don't know Pace…he's hurt pretty bad."

I nodded and followed Ed down the stairs and into the living room where Winry, Riza, Jason, Elicia, Al, and Scar already sat.

Ed went to sit next to Winry and I sat next to Riza. Jason stood against the wall and Elicia and Scar sat on the couch with Elicia next to him on the arm of the couch.

Everyone held sorrowful expressions, their heads hung low and arms crossed across their chest. Ed had put his arm around Winry and was quietly explaining Rin's condition to her. I could tell because she started to weep quietly, her shoulders shaking slightly as she struggled to hold a calm demeanor.

I folded my hands in my lap and fiddled with my thumbs.

A moment later, Winry sniffled again, suddenly standing, "Let me find a first aid kit, some of you guys are hurt."

After a short break Winry entered with a large basket of medical stuff, as Elicia went to the kitchen to get a pan of warm water.

One by one Winry and Elicia went from person to person, cleaning up various cuts, bumps, and bruises, Nelly replacing Elicia to help with some of the more complicated problems.

As I watched Nelly help wrap Ed's darkly bruised ribs (we were afraid he had broken one or two) I became aware of the strong throbbing in my left wrist, and a sharp stinging pain on my cheek.

After Ed's ribs were fully wrapped, Winry and Nelly got to me.

"Oh dear…it looks like you've sprained your wrist…" Nelly moved my wrist slightly, her withered hands gently probing at the swelling. I winced, as Winry gently cleaned the cut that was on my cheek, pressing a bandage over it.

Other than a few other cuts along my arms, and an extra-large bruise that was on my back, I was fine, and after wrapping my wrist tightly, they moved on to Scar.

Glancing around I saw that Riza was nursing a few cuts while Al had his left ankle propped up. Behind them Jason stood pressing a bag of frozen peas against his black eye, looking distant.

Scar was getting a rather nasty looking cut along his upper arm wrapped, his dark tattoos standing out against the white bandages.

Eventually a door opened upstairs and everyone in the living room looked up, but no one came down. There was the sound of the door closing, another door opening and closing again. Mr. McAnderson had just moved to Rin's room. At this point everyone had been looked at, and Nelly went upstairs to help her husband.

Nelly came down stairs once again, "Alright, quit glooming around. Shower time!"

Automatically everyone perked up a little. A shower was much welcome and so would the warm meal that would follow.

"We'll have to do this in pairs since there are so many people, with the ladies in the master, and the gentlemen in the guest bath…" Nelly thought aloud, looking around the room, "Riza, Elicia, and Pace! Let's go! Boys, the bathroom is down the hall on the left."

The three of us stood and followed without a word of defiance.

She took us to the back room on the bottom floor, hers and Mr. McAnderson's master bedroom with the biggest bathroom in the house.

I was the first to take a shower. I had tried to let Elisia and Riza to go, or one of them going with me, but they both insisted that I went first alone, insisting that I needed my privacy.

Having lost the argument, I stripped out of my clothes and let Nelly take them to wash them, with the promise of her giving us new ones to wear for the time being.

The hot water felt heavenly on my sore muscles, as I scrubbed away the dirt and grim from the fight, carful of my wrist and other bandages. I only allowed myself a quick moment to just stand in the hot spray, before stepping out, knowing that Elisia and Riza were both waiting.

Wrapped firmly in my towel, with another covering my dripping hair, I stepped out of the steamy bathroom.

Three outfits were laid out on the bed in order of our age. Riza's first and mine last.

With a nod, Elisia grabbed a couple towels from the pile and took my place.

I pulled on the warm clothes in silence occasionally looking up at Riza.

My ensemble consisted of black pants and a soft knitted sweater with a large neckline, causing it to fall off of my left shoulder. Once I had finished pulling on the warm socks I stood there without moving glancing up at Riza and something seemed to snap.

We ran into each other, each of us crying, and we held each other for a long time.

Sniveling, I pulled away slowly, "I'm sorry…this is all my fault."

Riza shook her head and wiped her nose, "No, Darling. This isn't anyone's fault. It was Maliki's fault."

I nodded, wiping my eyes off, "I'm the reason they hurt Rin…"

"Oh, Hunny," She whispered, pulling me into a hug. But I noticed that she didn't deny my statement.

A moment later Elicia exited the bathroom, and Riza had to pull away to shower, leaving one last kiss on my forehead.

After glancing at Elicia I exited the room to join the others, but all of the men had gone to take their showers leaving me to search for Nelly and Winry.

They were found in the kitchen, cooking. There was a huge pot of something boiling on the back burner of the stove and three other smaller pans cooking various foods.

"Hey, darlin'," She said to us, motioning for us to come in, "Take a seat. We're almost finished."

Nodding I sat a table that wouldn't seat all of the people in this house. There were only five chairs, but nine of us.

The kitchen was cute. The walls were a beige and the cabinets were made of walnut. The counter tops were granite with silver kitchen appliances. It was little, but it was functional and cute.

When the men and Elicia got back from taking their showers it was time to eat.

It turned out that the large pot had been a large hunk of meat surrounded by carrots, potatoes and a thick brown sauce, that Nelly later called pot roast. In the smaller pots there was various steamed vegetables and in the back pot there was a slightly lumpy mush thing I was able to recognize as mashed potatoes.

Not long after we'd started dinner Mr. McAnderson came down the stairs. He looked tired and worn down.

All of us had stopped eating to look up at him. The room was silent, everybody holding their breath in anticipation of what he'd tell us.

He looked around at our desperate faces, "We'll start with Roy," He said, looking at my mother, "He's got a broken wrist, multiple bruises, three broken ribs, a shallow gunshot wound on his shoulder and a pretty bad gash in his stomach. But with the right care and lots of rest he should be okay."

Riza nodded, "Thank you, Graham."

Mr. McAnderson nodded and looked to me and Ed, "Rin, will most definitely be okay. If Ed hadn't tried to fix him it would have been a lot worse. He has many many stitches, but he will heal."

I opened my mouth to say something but Mr. McAnderson put his hand up, "No, you cannot see them tonight. You'll have to wait for morning."

I closed my mouth and nodded again.

I looked over at Riza and Winry, as Nelly fussed Mr. McAnderson over to the table, "They'll be okay…"

The both had tears, as Riza nodded, "They'll be okay."

A while later, Scar stood, "I need to head out."

Nelly nodded, "You'll be okay going back to centeral?"

He nodded, grabbing his jacket, as Jason also stood, "I should also head out…I'm afraid that they decided to get my brother…in order to punish me."

This caused Winry to jump up in surprise, "Trisha!"

Ed jumped up, wincing slightly when the action jarred his ribs, "I'll go get her, bring her here. We can't let them get her!"

"No! You're hurt!" Winry grit her teeth. "I'll go back home and act like nothing was happening. They don't know that I was involved with this or the ball, and we'll act like we need to go out to the county to get a little bit of fresh air."

Nelly looked up from her husband, "I agree with Winry. Ed, you need to relax and allow yourself to heal. And it'll rise suspicion if Winry and Trisha were to suddenly up and leave, so allowing a few days and making plans would work best."

Ed looked like he wanted to protest before nodding slowly sitting down.

"Also, it would be best if your son has someone to wake up to, other than sweet Pace," Mr. McAnderson added, smiling as I felt a deep blush spread over my face.

A wave of chuckles passed across the table, as Ed snorted.

"And to think, an Elric and a Mustang," Winry smiled as she gathered her jacket.

Ed snorted again, "Yeah. Who would have thought."

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><p>That night I shared a room with Riza, who had refused to go back home to the apartment with Winry, Elisa, Scar, and Jason.<p>

I was curled up on the floor, on a small cot like thing, after insisting on allowing Riza to get the bed.

It was now that I had some time alone, without the fussing of Riza – who believed that I was asleep already – or Nelly, I could think back on the day, and felt the tidal wave of guilt crash into me full force.

This whole situation...everyone's pain...it's all my fault. I brought up the idea. No one else even wanted to do it. Riza had warned me that something bad was bound to happen. Why didn't I listen? If I had listened all of this could have been avoided.

My dad is struggling. Rin is hurt so badly. Everyone is quietly awkward with me. almost like im a threat that needs to be watched.

Tears fell from my eyes. I knew blaming myself would do no good, but I couldn't help it. It was all my idea. They all tried to tell me it was a bad idea.

All I'd wanted to do was help. Help my family stay together and now we're even more apart than we were.

* * *

><p>The next morning came luckily without any other real problems, as I had fallen into a rather deep sleep after my breakdown.<p>

Yawning widely I stumbled my way into the kitchen towards the welcoming smell of pancakes greeted me.

"G'mornin' Darlin!" Nelly happily piled a few of the fluffy round disks in front of me, setting down a small pitcher of warm maple syrup next to my plate. "It's 'bout time you got up!"

I dug into the pancakes, after smothering them in plenty of syrup, "What time is it?"

"Almost ten," Nelly said, just as Al stumbled in his hair ruffled comically. "Your mother and Ed are already upstairs."

I nodded, as Al plopped down next to me, "Morning, Pace."

"Morning," I smiled, before washing down the last of my pancakes with a gulp of orange juice.

"Neither have woken up yet," Nelly tossed over her shoulder, knowing that I was going to head up to my dad's room. "But you're father's in the first door on the right and Rin is in the door all the way down the hall on the left."

"Thanks Nelly!" I called back, before heading up stairs.

After a brief pause outside of my dad's room I knocked quietly, before opening the door slowly.

The first thing that I noticed was Riza, who was sitting slumped over in a chair next to the bed. She was asleep, her hand linked with my dad's own limp one. This caused me to trace my way up the bed, to my dad's pale face.

His chest was bare, showing the thick white bandages that covered my dad's middle, only partially covering the harsh bruising that came from his broken ribs. His other hand was in a wrapping similar to mine, only stiffer. He was a slightly gray pale, and lay shockingly still.

"Oh, daddy," I felt tears well up in my eyes, as I stumbled forward slightly.

I moved to the other side of the bed, something in the back of my mind noted that Riza had stirred at the sound of my voice and movements and was now sitting up.

Gently I traced the cast encasing my dad's broken wrist, the tears blurring my sight slightly. Moving my gaze up to my dad's face, I was shocked at the sight of the dark bags under his closed eyes, and the number of lines along his face.

Suddenly it was too much, and I allowed the tears I had been holding back to flow, streaming down my face. "Oh, daddy…I'm so sorry…"I sobbed, hunching over, clutching at his hand.

It had been a few days, and I barley left my dad's room, despite the fact that he had yet to stir. Although my heart ached to go over and check on Rin, something inside of me prevented me from being able to go into his room. Something that pulled at my heart when I had heard Winry's sobs, and Ed's fist connect with the wall.

Guilt chewed a steady hole through my chest, that it was my fault that both my dad and Rin we hurt. The two men in the world that I loved the most…hurt…because of me.

* * *

><p>I hesitated outside of the door.<p>

I was currently outside of Rin's room, debating again on if I should go in or not. This wouldn't have been the first time that I had found myself in a situation, but as I had many times before, I wasn't sure if I could go in.

Ed was currently in the room, and had told me this morning that Rin had briefly woken sometime in the middle of the night. Mr. McAnderson had warned us that he wouldn't remember the brief conversation that the two had shared, reminding me of the small conversations that I had with Rin when he was sick from the bullet wound in his shoulder. This had come to me through the thick waves of relief, knowing that with Rin waking up, he is one step closer to getting better.

I had just come from my dad's room, where he had sill yet to show any signs of life. Riza was with him now, so he wouldn't be freaked out because he was alone in a strange place, should he wake.

After a brief internal struggle, I decided to leave to doorway, the familiar guilt that I had chewing at me rising.

As I turned to go back down the hall, Rin's door opened, and Ed stepped out.

"Pace?" Ed caught my eye. He looked tired and pained, most likely, part from his broken ribs, and part from the state his son was in.

"H-hi, Ed…" I studdered slightly, feeling a blush run up my neck. I had barley spoken in the few days we've been here. "How are you?"

Ed's answering smile was surprisingly soft, "I'm doing better. It still hurts to breath and move around too much, but what's there to do?" he shrugged dismissively. "How about you? How's your wrist?"

I shrugged, my good hand reaching across to pick at the bandage, "I'm good…it hurts a little, but it's getting better." I shuffled a little, staring down at my socked feet.

It was all my fault…that Rin is in that room…that Ed was hurt…that my dad was hurt…

It was my idea to go to the ball…and my fault that we were caught…that they took the guys to that prison…

It was because they were trying to find me that they hurt Rin.

"You know…no one is blaming you," Ed's voice broke me out of my thoughts.

"W-wha?" I looked up to see Ed's soft gaze.

"You feel like it's your fault that Rin and everyone were hurt…especially Rin," Ed shifted, looking completely serious. "But it's not. It's never been. And it never will."

For a moment, all I could see was Mr. Elric, the history teacher. "But–"

"No, Pace," Ed held up his hand, a curious mix of " -the-teacher" and "Ed-the-dad-and-friend" on his face. "Under no circumstances is this your fault."

I nodded meekly.

"Now," Ed suddenly placed his hand on my shoulder, the gentle look coming back. "Nelly will be on my back if I don't lay down and get some proper rest. Rin's been moving around quite a bit, so make sure that he has someone to wake up to."

I couldn't have helped the dark blush that spread across my cheeks.

Ed passed by me with a gentle squeeze of his hand, before it slid off of my shoulder, and he continued down the hall.

I stood for moment, before steeling myself and grasping the door handle, a polished, silver thing, and slowly pushing the door open.

He lay on his front, the sheets on his bed only raised to cover up to waist. Bandages lightly covered his back, while thick bandages circled his wrists. Another thick bandage wound tightly around his head, drawing my attention to the point that his hair was back to its original golden blond color.

As I watched, he shifted, turning his head to face the doorway, reviling his battered face, which was lightly scrunched, looking like it was on the verge of waking.

Slowly I stepped forward, my heart breaking with each step bringing me closer, bringing the many injuries that marring the man that I loved in closer focus.

As I sunk slowly into the chair that was next to the bed, Rin's face scrunched slightly, and he murmured softly, "P-pace…"

My breath caught, "R-rin?" slowly, almost afraid that he would crumble to dust if I were to touch him, I reached out to brush the light strands away from his face.

"P-pace," He seemed to relax under my touch, so I continued to gently brush my fingers through the blond locks. Suddenly, his eyelids fluttered open, reviling glazed golden orbs. "P-pa-ce?"

"Hey…" I smiled gently, not stopping my petting, leaned forward to look into the pain glazed orbs. "How are you feeling?"

"Heavy…" he muttered thickly, his eyelids dropping heavily, before he forced them half open again. "I- I lo-ve yo-u…"

I leaned forward and carefully placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, "I love you too, Rin."

He gave me a sleepy smile, obviously fighting the impulse to dip back beneath the waves of unconsciousness.

"Sleep, my love," I whispered, gently brushing my forehead with his. "I'll be here when you wake again."

I started to hum an old lullaby, quickly helping Rin back into his healing sleep.

* * *

><p>That night I sat on the roof, after being reassured by Mr. McAnderson that Rin wouldn't wake again tonight, staring up at the stars.<p>

The blanket of shimmering lights seemed so bright, despite the lights of the city blocking some of them out.

Even though Ed had insisted that none of this mess was my fault, I still couldn't help the guilt that had been pressing down on me.

I hugged my knees to my chest, resting my chin gently on the tops, careful of the large bruise on my still sore back.

Suddenly, the weight of a thick blanket rested across my shoulders. I looked up in surprise to see Al slowly sitting down beside me, careful his own injuries.

"You know, I've always loved looking up at the stars," Al smiled up at the sky, his familiar golden eyes glowing with kindness. "I could always find comfort in the sky."

I stared at him, as Al glanced at me with an easy grin, before turning my eyes back up to the stars.

"When I was stuck in the armor, and couldn't sleep, looking up at the stars always seemed to help the time pass faster," Al continued. "There are so many stories up there, just waiting to be discovered."

There was a long pause, as Al continued to look up at the stars, seemingly lost in thought.

"You know, when Brother and I first had the accident" I didn't have to ask to know that Al had suddenly started talking of the failed human transmutation. "When I found out that first night that I couldn't sleep while stuck in the Armor, I started blaming myself."

I glanced over at Al, who's face was still turned up to the stars, "I felt like I was the one who should have stopped Ed from putting that idea in our heads. It was my fault that we were able to get that far. I felt like it was my fault that Ed was struggling to survive in the room beside me…and I felt that it was my fault that we had failed in the first place. And you know, I continued to blame myself even as Brother became a state alchemist. I know that he was also blaming himself for putting me in the armor, even though that was the only reason that I was alive, but I still blamed myself for the failure."

Al's eyes shifted down from the only sky long enough to meet mine for a second, before shifting back up again, "It was a long time before I was able to realize that none of the things that I was blaming myself for were actually my fault. And I realized, that nothing is ever your fault, unless you make it…"

"It will never by my fault that Brother and I had the accident, as it will never be Brother's," Al smiled, before standing and stretching. "Hmmm, Don't stay out here too late, alright? I'll see you in the morning."

I was then handed back into solitude, as Al's words continued to sink through my thoughts.

* * *

><p><strong>ALRIGHT! FINALLY DONE!<strong>

**{Yay!}**

**Thanks again for all of your patients with us!**

**Quote time!**

**"Hatred and sorrow are power; they are yours to control. All you have to do is turn them into strength, and use that strength to move forward."**


	17. Chapter 16

***Peeks out from behind rock* {Uh…*cough* hi…}**

**We're so sorry for the terribly long wait…we've been super busy! **

**{As amazing as Senior year can be…it can really suck and be overwhelmingly busy}**

**BUT! We're DONE! {YES! *Flops boneless-ly onto ground*} All we have is graduation this Monday, and then SUMMER! {ugh…I need to find a job DX} **

**But that also means that we ****_should_**** be able to get the rest of this story out in a relatively quick time! Whoot! **

**{Yeah, we'll definitely be trying our best!}**

**Anyway! THANKS SO MUCH FOR STICKING WITH US! **

**{WAIT WAIT WAIT! OMG I CAN'T BELIVE THAT I MISSED THIS! OUR ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY! SO THANKS FOR EVERYONE WHO LASTED ALL THIS TIME! THANK YOU!} Also, it was during our last update that the anniversary was! **

**{REVIEWS!}**

**Practice4morale – {As always thank you for your review! Hopefully while we wait out summer til collage, life will be a little less crazy!} And while I regret to say that my situation has gotten no better health wise, we are working on it. It'll just…take time. And patients. But anyways! The prayers are gratefully accepted and we will try to keep working on this and getting more updates faster. It gets much less busy from here on out through the summer. **

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**mixmax300 – {Hopefully this chapter will ease that daddy/daughter moment! And there will be MUCH more!} Honestly love the sweet stuff. Haha. There will be much more! And more action. Thanks for the review!**

* * *

><p>I was back in Rin's room, having been switching between his room and my dad's. It was two days after I had first gone into his room. While Rin had managed to semi-wake a couple times while I was there, my dad had yet to stir.<p>

Mr. McAnderson had warned me that it would take longer for my dad to start showing signs of improvements, due to his older age, I still found it hard to stand, seeing him like that.

Winry had been by once, bringing Riza a few sets of clothes and Kuroko with her, said puppy currently laying at my feet. She told us that her and Trisha would be coming out to the country in two weeks, which was how much time she needed to quit her job at the floral shop she had been working at.

Ed had just left the room to get some food, when Rin had begun to stir again.

I leaned forward, as Rin groaned softly, shifting.

Slowly his eyes opened, revealing bright golden orbs. _Clear, alert _golden eyes.

"Pace?" He muttered, blinking his eyes a few more times.

I smiled softly, "Hey there, Rin."

He smiled sleepily up at me, "Hey…" he shifted and winced, but continued to pull his hand up to reach out to me. I smiled and grabbed his hand, holding in both of mine.

Suddenly his eyebrows furrowed, and he gently pulled his hand out of mine, to slowly reach out to my face. "You're hurt…" He said quietly, tracing the bandage on my cheek.

I blinked, surprised. "It's nothing…really."

"When did this happen?" He tried to shift up, only to let a slight gasp of pain.

"Careful!" I gently pushed my hand into his shoulder, "Mr. McAnderson said that you won't be able to move around for a while, your back is in pretty bad shape."

His eyebrows continued to push together as he caught my wrist, his large hand easily wrapping around my bandaged wrist, "You're wrist it hurt too…"

He fingered the bandages gently, before moving his hand back up to my face to gently cup it.

"Pace, I- I know that I've already said this…but…" He gently rubbed his thumb along my cheek. "I want to tell you now. Now that we're out of danger, and the rush of a battle that…I…I love you."

I placed my hand against his, leaning into his touch. "Rin…"

"Pace, I…am so lucky to have met you and am so sorry to have dragged you through all of this," He smiled sadly. "But I am not sorry that I got to know you and that I love you."

"Oh, Rin," I smiled leaning forward to press my forehead against his. "You didn't drag me into anything. I came along with you willingly every step of the way…and I love you too."

Rin smiled up at me softly, "I wouldn't change anything in my life if it meant not meeting you…"

I blushed, tears welling in my eyes, "I'm so sorry I got you so hurt, Rin. I didn't think you would get captured. I didn't know they'd torture you just to find out where I am. I'm so sorry they hurt you."

"Pace," Rin's voice said gently, his thumb now stroking my face gently, "Nobody could have known any of that would have happened. It's not your fault."

I couldn't respond. He was just so sweet! He was so forgiving…

A stray tear slid down my cheek and Rin brushed it away with his forefinger.

"Pace, look at me," Rin whispered to me, his voice soft.

I looked into his eyes. His eyes which were so warm like melted gold, so soft and loving. I looked down.

"Hey now," He muttered, his hand slipping down to my chin, grasping it between his thumb and forefinger he raised my face to look at him again, "This isn't your fault. Okay?"

I nodded. I wanted so badly to hug him, but I was afraid I'd hurt him.

I felt a gentle tug on my chin. He was pulling my chin towards his. Our lips met softly…sweetly. He kissed me tenderly and very sweetly. Caressing my lips with his and letting a little bit of who he was melt into my soul like a gentle whisper as I placed a gentle hand on his cheek. I loved him.

* * *

><p>It was two weeks later when I was sitting in Rin's room, talking with him, that Al burst through the door, "Pace!"<p>

I glanced up from Rin, to Al's excited eyes.

"Huh?"

"Your dad!" Al laughed, coming up to me and grabbing my shoulders. "Roy's awake!"

"What?!" I jumped up, before glancing down at Rin, who smiled and nodded.

"Go see your dad," He squeezed my hand gently. I quickly stooped down to give Rin a quick kiss, before rushing out of the room.

Riza was exiting my dad's room as I burst into the hallway, her face had tears tracks on it, but she was smiling brightly, obviously just as happy as I am and laughed when she saw my excited expression, "He's awake, Pace, he's awake and alert, and has been asking for you."

I smiled and nodded, before slipping into the door.

Mr. McAnderson was at the bed, but pulled away when I entered, allowing me to see that my dad was not only awake, but propped up on a large stack of pillows.

As I slowly approached him, and Mr. McAnderson smiled at me and pulled me into a brief hug by the door, "He's wanting to see you."

I nodded, "Thank you…so much."

Mr. McAnderson smiled again as he pulled away from me, ruffling my hair slightly, "Go talk to your dad, kiddo."  
>I smiled, before going up to the bed.<p>

My dad was pale, but had much more color and life in his face than the past few weeks that we've been here. I could tell the he wasn't even close to being healthy yet, but this was a major step forward.

"D-daddy?" I said softly, all of my regrets of dragging him into this coming back full force. I felt tears form in my eyes.

He smiled, his grey eyes shifting to focus on my voice, "Pace."

He was awake…he was sitting up and awake, "Daddy…"

I ran across the room, tears escaping my eyes. He smiled, reaching both of his hands out palm up, "Pace…" His voice was chocked slightly, as I gently lay my shaking hands in his.

"Oh, Pace…my sweet Pace," His large hands grasped mine tightly, before he tugged me forward into a tight hug.

"Daddy…" I let out a soft sob, moving my legs to sit on the side of the bed, wrapping my arms firmly around his middle, carful of his ribs and other various injuries.

"Shh, baby girl, I'm here now," He pressed his lips to my forehead, tucking my head into the crook of his neck. "Daddy's here now…"

"Oh daddy…" I continued to sob, all of the building emotions I had been feeling crashing down on me. "You were always so still…"

"I'm sorry, baby girl, I won't worry you again…I'm here now," my dad cradled me against his shirt, his own tears wetting the top of my head. "I won't leave you again."

* * *

><p>"You know…she's been blaming herself for your injuries."<p>

"Really? How? This couldn't have ever been her fault!"

"That's what we keep telling her…but I don't think she's listened…she's been so worried. Al talked to her the other night, and that helped a little, but I think that you waking up will help a lot."

A slightly rough hand was brushing through my hair. I dimly realized that I was curled up on my dad's bed, with my head in his lap, and that Mr. McAnderson were talking quietly.

"Roy, she's a tough girl. But she can't keep blaming herself. Nobody could have known any of those events would have unfolded the way they did." Riza, was there too.

There was a moment of silence, "I know, Honey. I'll have a word with her the next time I see her."

I felt myself falling back into the deep abyss of sleep, "It looks like it's gonna rain."

"No, this is snow. It's too cold for rain."

* * *

><p>The snow didn't come that night, however. It just stayed cold, making the air frigid and everyone tense. It was shocking to both Rin and I, for it to be this cold. Even during the winter times, it would never get nearly this cold. The dark clouds hung low, covering the streets in an eerie darkness. In an attempt to keep the mood light Mr. McAnderson lit a fire in the fireplace downstairs and Nelly made tea.<p>

We'd convinced Mr. McAnderson to let Rin and Roy venture out of their rooms upstairs to join the rest of us downstairs. Insisting that it'd be good to interact with all of us positively for their health. He caved and, with help, we brought the two downstairs to sit around the fire.

I sat next to Rin on the loveseat, with Winry, Ed and Al next to us on the sofa. Roy and Riza sat across from us in the other sofa, and Mr. McAnderson and Nelly sat on the two arm chairs.

Most conversations were small talk between soft sips of tea. Rin held my hand and smiled at me.

Eventually, after all the tea was gone and yawns were heard over the crackle of the flames, we all headed back to bed. We helped Rin and Roy back up to their rooms and settled into our own beds, thankful for that moment of quiet peace we'd had.

The snow came three weeks later. It was gray as it fell from the sky, but white as clean linen when it hit the ground. Rin and I watched as it fell from the window in his room.

Rin's back was almost fully healed now, and he was able to move around freely and without much help. It aches occasionally, but Mr. McAnderson said that was naturally considering how much trauma had occurred there. My father was a little further behind in the healing process, but not by much. His wrist and ribs were the only things that still had yet to fully heal. The gunshot in his shoulder was healed very nicely with only a small scar to even show that he'd ever been hurt.

"Wh-what is it?" Rin asked me quietly, his eyes wide with wonder. The small white flakes were growing in size, clumping together to form bigger flakes, that danced through the air. Everything in view was slowly gaining a blanket of white.

I was about to respond with my father hobbled in, leaning slightly to accommodate his broken ribs, and smiled at us, "It's called snow."

"Snow?" I muttered, watching the huge white flakes fall from the sky.

"What is it?" Rin asked, then added, "Like…what's it made of?"

My father smiled and placed a gentle hand on Rin's shoulder, "All it is, is frozen water."

Mr. McAnderson wandered into the room and chuckled, "You two look like you've seen an angel."

"They've never seen snow…" My father told him, turning to glance at his direction.

"Really?" Mr. McAnderson asked, seeming to be astounded by the idea.

"Nope," My father said, shaking his head, "We lived to close to the desert. The most we got was a few drops of rain."

At that Mr. McAnderson laughed once again, "No wonder they look like they've seen angels."

Rin and I shared a look of wonder, as Mr. McAnderson and my father continued to talk, exiting the room quietly.

An hour or so later we wandered down stairs for dinner and found Winry, Ed, Riza, and Nelly sitting around the table staring out the window.

"Isn't it gorgeous?" Winry asked quietly, as if to not disturb the snow falling. "It rarely falls this thick in main Central."

Ed nodded, "The only time I've seen snow this thick was when Al and I were up at Ft. Briggs."

I glanced out of the window to see that the snow was falling even thicker than before.

"There's at least five inches out there," Nelly mused, as she set a large bowl of steaming stew on the table. "And if it keeps up like this, it'll be well over a foot tomorrow morning."

Rin glanced over to me, his eyes wide, at the thought of the snow being this thick, "Really?"

Nelly nodded, as she stood and stretched, moving towards the kitchen, "We've gotten around two feet before."

I blinked, finding it hard to imagine, "wow…"

We continued to watch the snow as it grew thicker, as Nelly moved to make dinner, and later that night when we sat around the living room, drinking coffee and hot chocolate.

* * *

><p>The next morning we woke to a world of white.<p>

As I made my way downstairs, I heard the sound of Nelly and Mr. McAnderson's voices.

Stepping into the living room I was surprised to see the elderly couple sitting around a box, shifting through a pile of clothes.

"What's going on?" I asked, pulling the cream colored cardigan I was wearing tighter around me.

"Ah, Pace! Good Morning!" Nelly smiled, as she held up a long silvery gray coat. "Come here and try this on."

I blinked, but stepped up to allow her to slip the jacket over my shoulders. It fit perfectly. I snuggled into the soft pull folds of the jacket, the now familiar smell of the McAnderson's house, the faint smell of dust tickling my nose.

"Ah! Just right!" Nelly smiled as she looked me up and down, a sparkle of something in her eyes. "I had a feeling that it would fit you."

I smiled, as she rubbed at my shoulders gently, "I really like it!"

"It belonged to my daughter," Nelly smiled sadly. "She got it from Central before Maliki took over."

"Where is she now?" I asked, turning to look at her.

"Hiding," Mr. McAnderson answered, as he lifted a different jacket, this one a charcoal black. "She was married to an alchemist, and was able to go into hiding with him."

I opened my mouth to answer when a sleepy shuffle in the doorway caused me to turn and see Rin. He smiled at me, sleep still heavy in his golden eyes, as he carefully stretched. The sight of the careful movements was a shocking reminder to me that while Rin was mostly healed, he still wasn't one hundred present yet.

"Morning," he smiled, his voice still slightly deep and gravely from sleep.

I answered his smile with a small laugh and a quick peck, as he wrapped his arms around me, "Good morning, sleepy head."

It had been rather entertaining to learn that when he was in a more relaxed environment Rin was an extremely heavy sleeper, and liked to take his time with waking up.

"What's going on here?" Rin asked, as he pulled back and inspected the jacket I wore.

"I donno, I just came in and Nelly had me put on this jacket," I shrugged.

"We decided that you two should experience your first snow the right way," Nelly chuckled, as Mr. McAnderson handed Rin the black jacket he had earlier. "Try this on."

Rin and I exchanged confused looks, before he shrugged and grabbed the jacket, pulling it on. It was a little big, but that was fine, because he still needed room to take his still healing back into a count.

While he was mostly healed, he was still afraid to really move too much. Unfortunately, he knew from experience that if he were to move too suddenly, it would end in excruciating pain.

"Alright! Now that we have jackets for you, put these on, and let's get you two fully bundled and out to experience this snow!" Mr. McAnderson exclaimed, as he thudded a large box of hats, scarves, and gloves onto the coffee table.

Soon enough both Rin and I were fully decked out with full sets of a hats, scarves, and thick gloves.

As I laced up the thick boots that Nelly had given me, I adjusted my fluffy blue hat, and glanced over to Rin, who looked rather amazing in his black hat and scarf combo.

Our first step out the door was met with an ice-like wind that bit at our cheeks and noses. Rin was so surprised by the sudden chill he'd actually brought up his fluffy hands to cover his face.

I laughed at him softly and pulled on his hands to get him to walk off the porch and into the snow.

The first step was surprising in a way neither of us had expected. There were at least two more steps off the porch, but we were met with pure snow. At least a foot and a half of the pure white glitter. We'd been so surprised we yelped quietly and tried to grasp at each other.

Nelly and Mr. Anderson were in the living room window, watching with a slight chuckle.

"It's so cold!" Rin said, shivering slightly.

We sat there a moment, both of us just taking in the pristine nature of the icy covers. It was gorgeous. The world seemed untouched and pure.

Rin smiled, running a gentle hand over the top of the snow, disturbing it slightly, "It seems so…calm."

I gave him a daring smile, "Then lets upset it."

He nodded with a handsome smile and stood, offering me a hand. As he pulled me to my feet he smiled, his brilliant golden eyes even brighter against the white background, his blonde hair peeking out from underneath his hat.

"Your nose is red," Rin giggled, lightly poking my nose.

I smiled," So is yours!"

We ran around in the snow for quite some time, disturbing the peaceful scene by leaving footprints and throwing up the snow so that it'd rain down upon us.

Rin grabbed my hands, pulling me into a hug, "You're so beautiful."

I blushed hard and looked down at my feet. Or it was more to his chest, we were too close to see our feet.

He chuckled lightly, a sweet and soothing sound that spread joy and filled my heart with love.

I still hadn't looked up at him when he pulled my chin up, our eyes meeting for a brief moment before his lips sought mine. When they met, the world became warm. Our cold cheeks and noses rubbing against each other warmed and I felt like I was melting. It was the most wonderful kiss we'd shared yet. Neither of us hurt, no sign of danger, just a peaceful joy that seemed to spread throughout the world.

Suddenly, something cold landed on my cheek, causing me to pull away and look up at the gray sky.

"Rin, it's snowing," I whispered, as more of the cold snowflakes fell lightly catching in our hair and kissing at our faces.

That serene scene was broken by the door opening and an excited Al coming out, his smile spreading from ear to ear with joy, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Do you wanna build a snowman" Al asked, his voice slightly higher than it usually is.

Rin and I exchanged confused looks before answering simultaneously, "What's a snowman?"

Al gave us this appalled look before smiling and motioning for us to come closer.

"Want to learn?" He asked in a whisper with barely held enthusiasm.

Rin and I nodded, assuming it must be fun if Al is this excited.

"First, we need to make balls of snow of three different sizes. One rather large, it'll be the base. Another that's mid-sized, it'll be the center, and a smaller one, it'll be a head."

We nodded and waited for Al to start his "ball" of snow before we copied his action.

Al kneeled down, gathering two handfuls of snow and mushing them together before rubbing it smooth. Then, he continued to add snow until it was large enough to roll around the front yard. Before we knew it he had a ball that was about knee high.

"Okay, now you guys make another one!" Al smiled broadly.

We followed his example, gathering the snow and rolling it around. And in a few short minutes we had two more that were smaller than the bigger one and different sizes.

"Awesome!" Al practically yelled, and motioning us to bring them closer to him said," Now we have to put them on top of each other."

Soon enough we had a tower of snow balls and Ed was coming out to give us some more supplies. There were some blue berries, a carrot, two rocks, a hat, and a scarf.

"Nelly said you could find arms out here." Ed told Al, handing him the various items, "Or make them make them."

Al nodded and turned to us, "The rocks are eyes, the carrot is the nose, the blue berries will make the mouth. I'll make the arms, you guys think you can handle putting the face on?"

We nodded as Al dropped the objects into the now small amount of snow.

As Rin and I applied the face, we could hear Al gathering the arms from a nearby tree.

Before we had everything in place on the snowman, the snow started to get heavier. The small glittering specks had transformed into large fluffy flakes. But still we stayed outside and soon were joined by Ed.

Ed ran out the door, quickly picking up some snow and throwing the ball of snow at me.

I was surprised and confused, "Why'd you do that?"

"SNOW BALL FIGHT!" Al shouted, gathering snow himself, "ED AND I VERSUS YOU AND RIN!"

Rin and I scrambled to make balls of snow for ourselves and threw them at Ed and Al.

Ed clapped his hands and pushed them into the snow and suddenly hundreds of snowballs formed.

"That's cheating!" Rin shouted at his father, quickly mimicking his action.

The snowball fight was quick and intense, filled with laughter. When we'd finished we were breathing hard and had decided that it was a draw.

"Alright you guys, come on back inside," We heard Nelly say form the porch, "We have hot chocolate and breakfast to eat!"

The four of us stood and walked back inside quickly, excited for the warmth that would ensue.

Taking of all of our jackets and layers was quite the task. Rin's back was hurting slightly so I helped him out of his layers after I'd taken my own off.

Finally, in warm and dry clothes, eating breakfast the world seemed happy. In this moment, the world was perfect. Calm, joy filled, and we savored every moment of it knowing it wouldn't last.

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><p><strong> {Aaannnddd There we go! Chapter 16 is done! Yay!}<strong>

**Thanks again for sticking with us for more than a year!**

**Also! We're almost at 50 total reviews! {It'll completely make our days if you guys get us to 50 reviews! So, PLEASE! I challenge you! REVIEW!}**

**QUOTE: "No one knows what the right decision to make in life is, and that is not why I made this choice!"**


	18. ANExtra

**{Uh, hi…}**

** Hello readers!**

**{So, first off I would like to apologize to you for taking forever to update, because it has been me entirely.}**

** I've been harassing her…**

**{The main reason that we haven't updated for so long is because I have been dealing with an extremely unexpected death in my family. } So it's not entirely her fault…**

**{Yeah, so just after I had been given the chapter for my half of the writing system we have, I lost my grandfather a few days later. His death was extremely unexpected and was a very hard blow to my family. I was always really close to him, so naturally I was hit extremely hard, and have been out of sorts for quite a time.}**

**{In all truth, writing had been the last thing on my mind for the past few weeks, while I go through the mourning process and deal with other family matters. Sense the time of his death my family has been slightly overwhelmed with dealing with boxes of pictures, hand crafts, and other things that belonged to him. Right now we are trying to get the full military ceremony for him organized and all of the old pictures scanned for my dad to send to my great uncle for identification.} **

**{So, in general, I've been really overwhelmed with mourning, planning, and over all life. But! I've been falling into a steadier pattern and have been getting into writing again. Yeah. So the next chapter should be coming to you guys soon.} If Silv here can quit putting this off for weeks on end. ;) (she knows I'm kidding)**

**{In the meantime, I wrote this quick little extra looking back into Roy and Pace's time back in Pisu because I didn't want you guys to go without something for so long.}**

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><p>Roy jumped slightly, as he heard a solid <em>thunk<em>, followed by a soft sigh from his daughter.

"Pace?" He questioned softly, sitting up from where he was lounging on the ragged sofa they had in their tiny living room.

"Daddy!" Pace's young voice greeted him cheerfully, as she skipped over to him. "I found something really cool!"

"Hmn?" Roy hummed as he turned to face her face. "What did you find?"

There was a shuffling sound, before Pace grunted, and Roy couldn't help but wince at the sound of her back popping. He could tell the ten year old girl had found something with considerable weight. A moment later another _thunk_, and a creaking protest told Roy that Pace had deposited the mystery item in front of him on the old coffee table three and half steps away.

Pace plopped down on the floor, brushing herself against Roy, as he slid down off of the sofa to the floor.

"Well? What have you found?" Roy asked, as he ruffled Pace's soft hair with one hand. With his other hand, he reached forward into the darkness, searching for the edge of the table.

"I donno what it is," Pace admitted, her voice clearly showing her curiosity of the unknown. "I found it outside of the guard station."

This caused Roy to stop and turn his head sharply towards his daughter, "What? I told you to stay away from there."

"But, Daddy…" Pace sounded guilty, but stubborn. "Last time I went over there I was able to get that fresh bread!"

"After almost getting shot!" Roy grit his teeth, trying to repress the bubbling anger that he felt at the memory of smelling the gunpowder on his baby girl. "There's a reason I don't want you going over there!"

"No one saw me this time…" Pace muttered softly, and Roy could just imagine her bottom lip quivering in a pout.

"Pace," Roy sighed, pulling his hand back, while twisting to face his daughter. He held out his hands, and waited until her impossibly small hands slid into his palms. "Baby girl…you are all that I have here. If you keep going to the guards, one day you might be hurt, or killed. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you…" He trailed off, as he closed his hands over his daughter's, closing his useless eyes tightly to prevent the tears that threatened to spill out at the thought.

"Oh, daddy…" Pace sniffled, before curling herself into his lap, her small hands pulling away to wrap partially around his waist. "I'm sorry…I'll stay away from them…" Roy held his precious daughter close, burying his nose into her hair.

They sat there for a while, just enjoying each other's presence.

Suddenly remembering the entire reason for their disagreement, Roy unwrapped one of his arms, and reached in front of him, "Alright…what is it that you've found?"

"I donno, but I've never seen one of them before…" Pace twisted around, settling herself into his lap. A small hand landed on his wrist, guiding his hand up and one to a cool metal box.

Roy's eyebrows shot up, as he brushed his hand around the box, feeling the distantly familiar dials and buttons. Pace had somehow gotten her hands on a radio player.

As he continued to run his hand over the knobs, and around the sides, Pace shifted impatiently.

"Well? Do you know what it is?" Pace asked eagerly, just as Roy's hand found the power cable.

"Uh," Roy mumbled, as he let his hand pull at the wire, to the plug. "Well, Pace, this is a radio."

"A radio? What does it do?" Pace leaned forward in his lap, to fiddle with the knobs.

"Well, if it had power, it can pick up on a couple different things, including music," Roy hummed softly, as he tried to identify how powerful the radio was.

"Really?! That's cool!" Pace exclaimed, jumping slightly in his lap. "Can we power it?"

"I don't know, baby girl," Roy shook his head. "We don't have enough electricity to spare."

"Aww…" Roy could, again, easily imagine her pout. "Wait! I just got an idea!"

Roy cocked an eyebrow down at his daughter, who he could feel twisting around to look up at him, "Yeah? What idea?"

"Well, Mr. Black was teaching us about electricity, and how it's possible to make your own! By using a wind t- ter-terben?"

"Wind turbine?" Roy guessed, slowly catching onto her idea.

"Yeah! That!" Pace exclaimed excitedly. "Couldn't we use a wind turbine? We could use my fan from the front yard!"

"Well…" Roy couldn't help but wonder. "Maybe…"

"Yes!" Pace jumped from Roy's lap. "We'll make a wind turbine and get enough power to turn on the radio!"

Roy chuckled and slowly stood, his back and legs protesting the movement, "Alright, we'll try."

He knew he couldn't help but bend to his baby girl's innocent will.

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><p><strong>{Yeah. So…I'm going to continue to work on the next chapter right now, and we'll hopefully be seeing you guys soon!} <strong>

**QUOTE**

**"You think the dead we loved truly ever leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly in times of great trouble?"**


	19. Chapter 17

**Hey guys! We're back! {We actually didn't take super long! Yay!}**

**Life has not been kind lately. I'm having another surgery tomorrow and I haven't quiet been the most focused person in the world. Sot it may actually be a little while before the next chapter. Sorry guys.**

**{As I said in the little extra I posted a few days ago, I have been morning a death, and thank you guys for being patient with me!}**

**{And in apology for the stupidly long wait, here's our longest chapter yet!}**

**REVIEWS**

**Mixmax300 – {Thanks for the support! And yes, I love to show the growth and relationships between Roy and Pace XD} I personally loved the little extra Silv wrote. And we appreciate your support and staying with us through this bumpy road.**

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><p>Only a few short hours after our fun in the snow there was a knock on the door. Nelly looked out the window.<p>

"Hide, quickly. There's a military car outside…" She said urgently.

We all scrambled, quickly trying to find places to hide where we wouldn't be seen by the front door.

Rin and I hid in the coat closet near the door, squishing in so that we were mostly behind the coats, so close that our chests touched and I could smell hot chocolate still left on his breath.

I looked up at him, and he smiled softly and grabbed my hands. I lay my head on his chest, waiting as another knock sounded at the door.

Nelly moved to open it. Everyone held their breath, the house was silent.

The door opened, the tension high, and Nelly laughed.

I looked up at Rin, confused.

"You guys can come out," She said between cackles, "It's just Jason."

"Who'd you think I was?" He asked, confused himself, then, after a moment realized the car," You thought I was….oh…sorry. I should've called in advance."

Everyone squirmed out of their hiding places.

"What's the news?" My father asked, his gray eyes unfocused and clearly concerned, Riza slipped under his arm, her hand linking with his.

Jason shook his head, "Before that I have someone I want you to meet."

Ed raised his eyebrows, "Who?"

"My brother," He smiled.

A young man, clearly in his teens, walked in. He looked a lot like Jason only his nose was slightly smaller and his hair was lighter. Physically he was smaller and much thinner than Jason.

"Hi. I'm Dennis," He smiled shyly, waving slightly.

Alphonse smiled in return, being the first to introduce himself, "Hi, Dennis. I'm Alphonse."

Dennis stopped, his eyes wide, "Al-Alphonse…? Like….Alphonse Elric!?"

Ed looked at Jason, "Didn't you tell him who we were?"

Jason shook his head, smiling widely at his younger brother.

"And you must be Ed!" He giggled shyly, excitement building in his eyes as he shifted his gaze toward Ed then around the room. "So you're Colonel Mustang…and Riza!"

"Don't call me that…" My father glared at the boy's direction, although I could tell he wasn't putting his all into it. Ed laughed quietly.

"Shut it Fullmetal!" My father glowered.

"Alright, alright Roy," Ed laughed, putting his hands in the air.

Rin and I looked at each other. Dennis was much shyer than Jason.

"Anyways," Jason said, looking towards Nelly, "I was wondering if you'd be able to look after him until this…whatever our next step is…is over."

Nelly thought a moment, "That's not a problem," She turned towards Rin, "He'll share a room with you."

Rin nodded, not really caring that he'd have to share a room.

"Great!" Jason said, smiling, "I'll feel a whole lot better. Thank you so much Nelly."

She nodded, "I have to go make some calls."

"Who're you calling?" Ed asked, suspicious.

"Scar and Elicia. Y'all need to plan what yer doing next, so you'll get together tomorrow around noon. Yes?"

Ed nodded, clear dread on his face, this caused Winry, who had been quiet until now to place a hand on his arm. She had arrived alone, and had explained that Trish would be staying with Garcia Hughes' at her house in order to stay out of sight and keep going to her school. Trish had argued at first, but when faced with the fact that both her parents wanted her to be safe, had caved and moved into the close family friend's house.

"Don't worry Ed, everything will turn out," Mr. McAnderson said, pounding him on the back.

Alphonse turned to Jason, "So what's the news on Maliki."

Jason shook his head, "He's gone completely mad. Or…I guess he's just extremely paranoid."

Everyone sat down to listen to what Jason had to say, even Dennis sat down, though he stuck close to his brother.

"He's fired nearly all of his advisors, worried that they'd either give away his secret, or that they were lying to him. He's been locked up in his room for the past four days, only letting his chef in and out and one of his very closest advisors."

"So…" My father muttered, "He's giving orders from his room?"

Ed's brow furrowed, "What a coward."

"His mental state is diminishing. He'll lose it any day now." Jason told us, looking down at his boots, "And to think I joined under this man's rule…"

Alphonse shook his head, his voice soft, "Jason, you didn't know. Nobody knew."

"I should've seen the signs," He said, clearly disappointed in himself, "See…I grew up with an Alchemist. I should've known. I could tell his eyes weren't the color they'd been. I could see the signs of alchemy on some walls or the doors. I could tell some things weren't what they appeared to be."

Dennis put a quick hand on his brothers' shoulder. They clearly had a very close bond. It was no wonder Jason wanted to keep him safe.

"Jason, it's not your fault. He fooled everyone," my father said, standing to put a hand on Jason's shoulder. He had finally figured out where everything was in the house and no longer needed assistance while walking around.

Jason nodded, "I suppose you're right."

Despite his reassurances, he still looked troubled.

* * *

><p>Later that night, after everyone was asleep, I lay awake. Jason had left hours ago, leaving Dennis and Rin in the same room, Roy and Ed with their wives. Scar and Elicia would come over tomorrow for the next stage in our plan. But for now, I lay awake.<p>

The world outside was wide awake with me. The wind howled causing the tree branches to come together and scrape against the side of the house. The snow on the ground left the world in an ominous purity. The moon light was dim, giving off very little light, leaving the snow to glisten quietly. Silence rang in my ears as I started to dread the following weeks, hoping to whoever would listen that nobody else would get hurt.

As I dozed I knew I had a restless night ahead of me.

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><p><em>I'm restrained by six metallic cuffs, suspended in the air on a concrete wall. Two cuffs around my ankles, two around my wrists, one at my waist, and another around my throat. Edward, Alphonse, Winry, Riza, my father, and Rin are chained to the ground and on their knees. The men don't have their shirts on and the women are in a thin top layer. They all looked up at me with sad eyes, my father's head is turned down, but Rin tries to give me a weak smile.<em>

_"You could've prevented this…if you'd just have stayed in Pisu…" Maliki's voice sounded in my ear._

_Six men came out, dressed in black with cloths covering their face, whips held in their right hands. _

_They raised the whips, and they all cracked onto the backs of my loved ones. Winry cried out, Ed, Al, and Roy grit their teeth, and Rin had tears running down his cheeks._

_"NO! Stop!" I tried to screech, but the metal cuff around my throat prevented me from screaming, so it was a whisper, "Beat me instead…"_

_Tears rolled violently down my cheeks as Maliki's voice sounded once more, "It's too late for that now."_

* * *

><p>I woke up, screaming and crying and flailing.<p>

Strong arms wrapped around me. "Shhhh…shhh…it's okay. I'm right here…" Rin whispered into my hair.

Without thinking I turned into him, burying myself into him. Tears soaked through his t-shirt as I wrapped my arms around him tightly.

"Oh Rin…" I sobbed, pressing my face into his strong shoulder.

He sighed quietly, "I heard you screaming…it's okay, Pace. It was just a dream."

"…you died…I watched you die…"

"Pace, I'm right here. And I'm not going anywhere." He told me, his voice soothing as his hands rubbed my back.

He lay down with me, pulling me so that my head was on his chest, his arms winding around me.

"Sleep now, it's okay," He whispered, hugging me tightly to him.

I nodded, slowly nodding off once more.

I woke to Rin stirring beside me, confusion running though my brain. I had forgotten that Rin had joined me last night.

"Good morning, Pace." He said, smiling softly and kissing my forehead.

I blushed, ducking my head into his neck, "Good morning Rin."

"Sleep okay?" He asked, his hand idly brushing at the hair on the back of my neck.

I nodded, looking up to meet his smoldering golden eyes, "Much better, thanks to you."

Now it was his turn to blush, moving so that he was propped up on his elbows, "Care to tell me what your nightmare was?"

"I don't remember it," I quickly lied, not wanting to explain it to him.

He gave me a wary look then shrugged, "Well, if you do and you wanna talk about it, just let me know."

I nodded, moving so that my legs were dangling over the edge of the bed, my toes just barely touching the wood floor.

He moved so that he was next to me, his arm wrapping around my shoulders, "Hey," He whispered gently, pulling my chin up with his other hand, "I…I love you."

I leaned into him, smiling, "I love you, too, Rin."

He smiled crookedly, his hand shifting from my chin to brush my bangs out of my face. I leaned into his hand, loving the feeling of his long fingers cupping my cheek.

We shared a tender kiss, as his arm wrapped around my waist. I snuggled into his broad chest, feeling him rest his chin on my head. We stayed there for a few more minutes, before a loud gurgled came from Rin's stomach.

"Let's go get some breakfast," He blushed slightly, pushing himself off the bed and holding his hand out for me to take.

I giggled and grabbed his hand, letting him pull me out of the warm sheets.

* * *

><p>After making it downstairs, breakfast and showers came and went quickly. As we gathered in the living room, it was just in time that everyone was arriving.<p>

Nelly was making lunch preparations as the rest of us; Ed, Al, Jason, Dennis, Roy, Rin, and myself, waited for Elicia and Scar to come over.

A feeling of unease and tension settled over the group. Ed got up and walked around, while Winry watched. Alphonse was bouncing his knee impatiently, and Jason and Dennis sat quietly, each in their own little worlds.

Soft murmurs came from the far corner of the room, from where my parents were playing chess. It was always an interesting thing to watch, as my dad had memorized the board and where all the pieces were located. Riza would quietly tell him which piece she would move and where, and my dad would constantly ghost his hand over the board, if he needed to reorient himself.

Rin and I were engaged in an epic battle of thumb wars. However, Rin generally won…his thumb was longer than mine.

Rin trapped my thumb under his and I groaned in defeat as the door opened to show Elicia and Scar following behind her.

Ed stopped pacing and allowed Elicia to hug him before pulling Winry into his arms. A soft groan came from the corner, where my father had just knocked over my mother's king, winning the game.

Everyone exchanged greetings and hugs and kisses on the cheek and so forth, and soon we were all seated. As we all settled, the smiles faded with the thought of the serious upcoming discussion in mind.

"So…next plan of action!" Ed said, looking over to Elicia for ideas.

"Hmmm…" She hummed, "We've already tried talking…so now we need to try a more physical side."

We thought about this, the wheels turning in each person's mind.

Jason spoke up first, "I could get you guys in…but it'd be tricky."

"Tricky isn't something that deters us from a mission," My father noted frankly.

"Good point," Jason muttered, stroking his imaginary beard with his left hand.

Mr. McAnderson spoke up and added his little piece, "Chose a plan that results in the least amount of injuries please."

We sat in silence for a good couple of minutes. Each of us thinking out their own versions of a physical show of force to make Maliki change his mind.

Scar frowned, "We can't be too forceful or he won't change at all…we need to show him that we're on his side."

And at that, everyone was set into gear, all of us thinking frantically for ideas.

"Uh…what if you get someone, not an alchemist, to try and assassinate Maliki…but one of you guys saved him? Like, to put you in the good light?" Dennis suddenly spoke up, seemingly thinking aloud.

There was a moment of silence, as everyone stared at him, causing Dennis to turn a bright red.

"O-or n-n-not," He stuttered, looking flustered. "I-i-i-i-it was o-o-on-only a, an idea!"

"No, that's a good plan, but we'd have to have everyone come out with no injuries," Al pointed out.

Roy nodded, "And who exactly are we thinking of to get to assassinate Maliki?"

At this Jason was ready with an answer, "A prison inmate. We could bust one out without Maliki's knowledge and get him to do it. But we'd specify not actually killing him, just making it seem like that was his intention."

This was met with silence as we all tried to figure out how he'd pull of such an event.

"Or… we could plant someone in the prison…" Rin said, as he gazed around the group. "Someone we know wouldn't stray."

"But also not as well known for being linked with us…" I added, rubbing my chin.

"Scar!" Elicia exclaimed suddenly, turning to the scared man.

"As far as the official military knows, you still hate Amestris…" Ed mused.

"Ed's right," Roy nodded. "The work that we were doing with him was kept very hush, hush."

"And," Al chimed in. "Scar's Ishvalen, just like Maliki, showing him that it's not just alchemists that can be a threat."

"Oh man! It'd be easy. We could stage an arrest, for something minor, in order to get him in the prison for a few nights. I could make sure all the military personal weren't in that cell area, then stage a dramatic break out. Many officers down, sirens, emergency protocol, and yet still keep Scar in play. Then he'd make his way to the President," Jason was now drawing some rough sketches, "Knock out more guards, get closer, more guards down, we call for back up, we're stranded, then you guys swoop in and save the day!"

Elicia thought about this, "Yeah," she said, "Yeah! This could work!"

Jason look surprised, almost like he hadn't expected his plan to appeal to everyone, but then he glowed with pride.

"You know, you really should be sure that this young man is okay with you volunteering him with this," Nelly suddenly broke the thick excitement.

"Uh," Elicia blinked sheepishly, as we all turned to look over at Scar, who had yet to say a word. His expression was stony. "Scar?"

"Hn," He grunted, looking away towards the wall. "Whatever."

Elicia grinned, "Wow, who knew he'd be so enthusiastic."

This caused the group to chuckle, as Scar gave Elicia a withering glare.

"Now we just need a day and time to set this plan in action…" Ed said, causing the mood to somber.

"I will need some time to get things set up for the fake break out…" Jason muttered.

Elicia thought a moment, "How's five days sound?"

"Perfect," Jason nodded.

And with that we had a plan.

"We'll meet up on the third day to go over the plan and decipher everyone's part in the plan."

We nodded, and everyone started to get up.

Nelly came out of the kitchen and called for lunch and we all gathered around the tiny table, taking over counter space, and had our mid-day meal.

* * *

><p>The world outside rages, just like his mind. Huge snow drifts covered the grounds, showing how pure everything was, and yet how blind it was. The snow, acting as a blinding blanket to hide who was with him, and who was not. The gusts of wind, the world trying to figure it out.<p>

He lay in his bed.

Sweating and angry, aggravated.

He couldn't trust anyone.

He's fired most of the advisors, chefs, and military personnel who he believed he could black mail into following him or were loyal enough to keep.

No longer allowing anyone to come in.

Meals were slid under the door.

Messages related through the door.

Orders are given through here.

He sits, waiting for someone.

One of those damned Alchemists or one of their allies.

Try to kill him.

Restless.

He got out of bed, walking over to the mirror and looked at myself.

Silver-like gold eyes.

Hair ragged and messy.

Huge bags underneath eyes from the lack of sleep.

He shook with the dread,

Fear of someone smashing through his windows or his door.

He called for wooden slates,

Covered the windows with boards himself.

Imagine what his loyal citizens were thinking to themselves.

_He must've gone crazy._

_I can't believe what he's doing._

_He must not be fit enough to rule a country._

"NO!"

He screamed.

"I can't let them take me."

He growled, quieter.

"They cannot corrupt me."

Guards everywhere 24/7.

Don't trust any of them.

One chef.

Fear he'll poison any day.

Prisons.

Fear that the guards will let the prisoners loose.

Alchemists are still lose in his city.

Get them out.

NOW.

No longer stand passive while they're slumbering peacefully.

No waiting for their chance to attack.

NO more!

Orders.

Find them.

Kill them.

Kill whoever was hiding them.

This…would finally solve his problem.

* * *

><p>Rin sighed, as he retreated back into the kitchen, away from all the people.<p>

Running a hand through his hair, he leaned against the counter, trying to make sense in his raging thoughts. The plans they just made clashed with the worries he was experiencing following his family, and concern over Pace.

Pace.

His love.

He had a feeling the nightmare from the night before wasn't so easily forgotten, as she had claimed. When he had asked her about it in the morning, he hadn't missed the mostly hidden terror that had flitted behind her beautiful blue eyes.

The first reaction to her hiding it from him had been pain, and slight betrayal, but Rin was quick to snuff it. He knew what it was like to have nightmares. But it still stung that she had hid it from him.

Was it a lack of trust? He trusted her with his life.

Did she think that he didn't care? Because he did care, immensely.

Did she think he'd laugh at her? Never.

What was it then? He had no idea.

" –in? Terrin?"

Rin jumped, as a hand waved in front of his face. Ed grinned as Rin finally noticed him standing in front of him, "Finally."

"Da," Rin shook his head slightly, as his father leaned against the counter next to him. Idly he noticed that he was rubbing at the fresh scars that circled his wrists, and clenched his hands into fists.

"You must have been deep in there," Ed grinned easily at his son, who resembled himself so much. "What're you thinking about, Kid?"

"Way too much," Rin admitted, rubbing at the back of his neck. Unconsciously he shifted his weight off of his aching leg, which had started to hurt with the snow.

"I know that feeling…" Ed chuckled, before gazing at Rin with a somber look. "But in all seriousness, what's up? I just had to knock you out some seriously deep thought. Is everything okay?"

"It's just…" Rin shuffled and looked down at his hands. They shook slightly.

"You're worried about Pace," Ed nodded his head, causing Rin to look over at him in surprise. "Ah, that makes sense."

"Ah…" Rin could only gaze at his father in shock.

"You know, she really does love you…a hell of a lot," Ed grinned over at the dumbfounded look his son was giving him. "I know the look of someone debating love. Trust me, I've seen that look on Colonel Bastard's face plenty of times before he finally sucked up the balls to ask Riza out."

Rin felt slightly numb, as he watched the familiar nostalgic look grace his father's face.

"He struggled with his feelings too?" Rin watched as emotions flashed through his father's eyes, zipping past with the memories that he was undoubtedly reliving. Memories of a happier time.

"Hm? Oh yeah," Ed grinned over Rin. "He was giving her those lost and loving looks behind her back for years. He would always turn stupidly protective whenever she was in a sketchy spot. Of course he was like that for all of his team…including me."

This caused Rin to perk up slightly, his dad rarely spook of his time in the military.

"I remember there was a mission when I was only thirteen where it had to be just me, Roy and Riza," Ed's eyes glazed over slightly, as he relived the experience. "I had only been part of the team for only a year at that time, and was still a little awkward around all of them, especially when I didn't have your uncle with me. I remember that I had thrown a major temper tantrum when Roy told me about the mission, and that your uncle couldn't come with. It was set up that I was posing as Riza's son, and we were trying to get into the shelter of this high ruling gang. The plan had been going really well, until someone spotted Roy in the building he was hiding in, waiting for us. Soon enough Riza was being held as hostages. Somehow they had found out that I had automail, and when they tied us to the chairs they had, my arm had been ripped out of the socket – something that hurt like a bitch by the way – and tied my hand so I couldn't carve any circles. So we were helpless. It was the moment that a gun was pointed at my head that Roy went berserk. He couldn't have fried those bastards any faster, but it didn't stop one of the others to open fire on us."

Rin couldn't help but stare wide eyed as he father spoke, and couldn't help but notice that the way that Ed said 'bastard' when describing the gang members was completely different from the way he used the same word to describe Roy. Instead of the fondness and respect that came with Roy's title, Ed's voice had dripped with venom and hate. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Rin tried to imagine Roy, eyes clear and sharp, glaring as he snapped mercilessly, causing him to shiver slightly.

"Because we were tied up, there was little we could to avoid those shots, while Roy was burning the others to a crisp. Luckily that guy had terrible aim, and only managed to hit Riza in the stomach and me in the automail knee and opposite foot."

Ed paused slightly to look at Rin's hand, which had reached up to rub at his own shoulder. Rin blushed and dropped his hand, knowing that his dad still felt guilt that he had been hurt, all those months ago. At Ed's concerned look, he shook his head signaling that it wasn't actually bothering him, just a phantom pain.

"Anyway, Roy had taken little time to toast all of the members and get to us," Ed continued dispite the worried and doubtful look that he shot Rin. "He was quick to get us untied. I don't think before I had seen him so mad, or worried. Those gangsters had roughed us up quite a bit when they found out, before tying us up, so neither of us were in good shape. I was stuck with a broken automail knee and no arm, all the while bleeding from the gunshot and other various injuries, while Riza was really struggling with the gunshot to the stomach. Roy didn't know what to do. The next thing I remember was waking up in the hospital to Al and Hughes."

Rin watched as he dad fell back into the memory, as a bittersweet look ghosted across his face.

"Hughes was almost always there when I ended up at the hospital. That was also the first time that I've seen him look so tired. After he had gotten the okay from the doctors, I asked to go see Riza, and he had to push me on a wheelchair over to her room."

A wheelchair? Rin's eyebrows came together as he tried to think of what it was.

Ed blinked out of the memory again, to see his confused expression, and smiled sadly, "As the name implies, a wheelchair is a chair built on a set of wheels. It's used a lot in hospitals when the patient can't walk around, but needs to get from one place to another. People who suffer from paralysis also use them, or just can't walk on their own."

"So, did Havoc…?" Rin asked, trying to imagine what his father had described, only coming up with a silly image of a kitchen like chair with wheels attached to the bottoms of the legs. He shook his head to shake the image loose and focus on his father's face.

Ed nodded, "Yeah, he used one until we managed to partially fix his legs with the stone. Anyway, I had always hated having to use them, but at that moment, I didn't really have a choice, with my leg pretty much completely destroyed. As I said, Riza was in a different room, and Hughes had to wheel me across the hospital to go visit her." Ed shook his head, as a soft smile spread his face. "We found Roy asleep against her bed, holding her hand. He looked terrible, with dark bags under his eyes and unwashed hair. Now that was a sight, Roy was always so worried about what he looked like, so the fact that his hair was unwashed meant a lot…That's when Hughes told me that Roy had been bouncing between the two of us like crazy, refusing to go home, eat, or do anything until he was sure we were okay. It was obvious that it hadn't been Roy's choice to fall asleep, but there he was. That's when I started to think he had feelings for her that were more than just teammates."

Again, a bittersweet smile formed on Ed's face, his eyes distant, "That's also when I had started to realize that I really could trust the two of them. And I guess in conjunction to trusting them, I started really trusting the rest of the team. During the rest of the recovery time, Roy was really protective of both of us."

Rin could tell that Ed looked up to, and really respected Roy. Despite the annoyance that he constantly felt towards the older man, Rin could tell Ed loved the man like family. A couple times Rin had caught the two men talking quietly, be it Ed asking for advice, or reminiscing. He could also remember times when he was little and it was a rougher time when Ed would mumble like _'oh god, how did Roy do this…'_ or '_what would Roy do here?_'.

Ed smiled at his son, who had again gotten lost in his thoughts, "You know, I said it before, but she does love you. She loves you a lot."

Rin stared at his father, his thoughts coming back to his original worries, "But…"

Ed shook his head, cutting off Rin's argument, "No, she loves you, immensely. Don't ever think that she doesn't. Just like how you love her, she loves you. I know that you love her, Kid. But you also need to remember, this is the first time that either of you guys have really loved anyone, outside of family. Any relationship will have speed bumps, and they only become problems if you let them. I know for a fact that when your mother and I first got together, it was far from a smooth road."

Ed paused to let this sink in, as Rin stared down at the floor, trying to push back the doubts he was feeling.

"Your mother and I started out as old family friends, siblings in everything but blood," Ed sighed and rubbed the back of his neck and scrubbing at the scruff on his chin. "And when I first started to love her, I did the same thing that Roy was doing. I was trying to deny it. And I did deny it until Riza smacked some sense into me. So, when we did get together, I couldn't help but be super carful with her, and it just pissed her off. That was the biggest thing that I learned was that the only way to win in a relationship is to trust. Trust in the fact that Pace loves you with all of her heart, because that's how both of her parents are. Trust in the fact that you love her, and would give your life for her, just like she'll do the same. Trust her."

Rin blinked at his father, relishing in the truth of his words. He was right, Rin just had to trust in his love for Pace, and trust that she will do the same. She must have a reason, and will tell him eventually.

Rin nodded his head, deciding what he would do.

He'll love her.

He'll love her will all of his heart, until she knows that that's all he will ever feel for her. Pace was his world.

Rin was once again pulled out of his thoughts by his father, who clapped him lightly in the shoulder, "Now that's the look I like to see. You'll be fine, Kid."

Rin smiled and pulled his father into a brief hug, "Thanks, Da."

* * *

><p>After dinner Jason had to leave to get back to his post. Elicia and Scar also left to go set up some other people and ready them for the upcoming events. I hoped and prayed that this attack wouldn't hold so many injuries for us.<p>

I sat on the window ceil at the end of the hallway, just starring out at the vast whiteness and almost wishing it would be warmer. The sky was gray, more snow on the way, and the wind howled and raged. As the first snowflakes began to fall I knew this storm would be a bad one.

Footsteps neared my position, and I could hear the slight shuffle and the careful hesitation held by them. I didn't look at who it was. I already knew those footsteps. Right now they were debating on whether or not they should interrupt me or not. These were the footsteps of a blind man, my father.

"Hi, Daddy," I said to him, letting him know it was okay to come talk to me.

He walked more confidently, with still some hesitation, and smiled, "Hey, Baby Girl."

He felt around for the edge a little before sitting down on the ledge with me. He faced out, to where the stairs were, at the edge of my feet. I still looked out the window, not wanting to take my eyes away from the darkening sky.

"I hear you had a nightmare last night," He whispered, his tone concerned as he placed a hand on my foot, "Are you okay?"

I nodded, "I'm fine, Daddy. It was just…just a nightmare."

I knew he wasn't convinced though. His gray eyes "looked" at me, his brow furrowed and the corner of his lips turned down, "Do you wanna talk about it?"

At that I curled up further, my head touching my knees. I wanted to tell him…I just didn't know how. Do I just bring up the fact that I watched the people I cared about most die?

"It was horrible…" I muttered, my voice shaking.

His hand went to my shoulder, his hand making tiny reassuring circles on my shoulder blade, "Tell me about it, Pace."

His voice was quiet, sensitive, and I nodded, took a deep breath and explained my nightmare to him. I spoke quietly, my voice occasionally breaking, as I relived the fear of seeing my loved ones helpless and hurting. I shook as I recounted the pain of hearing Maliki's voice whispering that it was my fault. Tears fell from my eyes and I felt my father get up and wrap himself around me. I turned to tuck my head under his chin, burying my face into his shoulder. "H-he told me I could've stopped all of it…that I couldn't have prevented your deaths…"

"I was so scared, Daddy…I thought I'd lost all of you," I sobbed.

"No, Pace. It was just a dream. Nothing like that will ever happen. You, Rin, Ed, Al, Winry, Riza, and I will finish this and live happily…just as we've dreamt." His voice was still quiet, reassuring, "I love you."

Taking a deep breath I calmed down slightly, the tears no longer streaming down my cheeks, "I love you too, Daddy."

With that he stood, and I realized that Rin was standing right behind him I gasped. How long had he been there? Had he heard my story?

My father had taken himself down stairs again, gently raising a hand to rest on Rin's shoulder briefly as he passed, and Rin came over, sitting where my father had been only seconds before.

"Why…" He started, "Why hadn't you told me?"

I looked down at my thighs, "I don't know…I was afraid to."

Rin gently took one of my hands, looking into my eyes seriously, "Never, ever, be afraid to tell me anything. Got it?"

I nodded, still not looking at his eyes directly, "Got it."

He took his other hand and placed it on the side of my face, my cheek in his palm, urging me to look at him, "Next time, please tell me."

"Okay, Rin," I whispered, leaning into his hand and closing my eyes.

We sat like that for a few moments, a happy silence shared between us.

He stood up as if to leave, and leaned down to kiss my forehead, taking his hand away.

Before he walked away I grabbed his wrist, "Wait, Rin!"

Looking back at me I caught my breath. His eyes were soft, his hair gently falling over his forehead, and his body held no signs of aggression. Just…love.

"Yes?" He said, his voice just as soft as he was.

I blushed hard, "Th-thank you…"

He smiled at me, his head tilting slightly to the left, "Of course, Pace."

* * *

><p><em>Finally! He had them. <em>

_Hands and feet bound, gags in their mouths. _

_It was beautiful. _

_Bruises covered them, minor cuts here and there. _

_Their eyes were filled with rage and fear. _

_The four males were antsy, waiting for him to slip up. But he wasn't going to._

_He looked at the girl and found something surprising. Her blue eyes held neither fear nor rage. But rather…a soft kind of pity. She wasn't angry at him for killing that couple. Nor scared of how he'd managed to catch them. Just…pitying._

_It was confusing. How could she not be angry? How could she not fear? How!?_

_Anger enraged, and he lashed out at her, slapping her down. She hit the floor with a satisfying thud and he heard a muffled cry. The four males stirred angrily. But she…she still didn't look angry! What was her deal!?_

_Suddenly they were alone. She stood there, unbound, but made no move to attack. _

_"Why…" he asked her. _

_She smiled, "Because I want to forgive you but it may be impossible. But as much anger as I have for you, I still can't kill you. I always wondered what kind of man would tear apart families, but now that I see you I think I understand. You're sad and pathetic and empty. There's nothing inside of you. And as much as I hate you…I just can't do it."_

_Shock?_

_ Surprise?_

_Anger? Or maybe it was just amazement. Nobody had ever dared to say anything like that to him. Nobody ever said much at all. _

_Why wouldn't she kill him? _

_"Revenge…is like a two headed viper. While you're watching your enemy fall, you're poisoning yourself," She finished. _

_This girl…was wise for her age. How old was she? Maybe 17? At most 18. And she's spewing sayings like a monk. _

_Her father took down the previous President. She could kill with a mere snap of her fingers, and yet she chose not to. She chose to stand down._

* * *

><p>It was later that night I laid there and thought about how Rin had looked at me today. His whole being held nothing by love and care towards me. It surprised me at times. Not because I knew he cared for me, but because I'd forget he did. For the longest time, when people looked at me, they either saw that I was a fire alchemist, or that I had a blind father, or that my father had taken out the Furher President. People generally regarded me with fear or pity, so love (besides that given by my father) was new to me.<p>

The wind was still howling outside, the snowflakes falling harder now than they had been earlier. For some reason I realized that I was afraid of losing Rin. Afraid off making him angry, afraid of pushing him away, afraid that he'd find something wrong with me. But those fears are ridiculous, right? They couldn't happen.

However, I was kind of distant with him…

My thoughts were cut off by my door opening. It was Winry.

I was surprised, and I'm sure it showed on my face as I sat up and made room for her to sit down.

She laughed slightly, "I knew I'd find you awake."

I didn't respond, not because I couldn't, but because I didn't know what to say.

"Rin cares for you a lot, you know?" She whispered, smiling down at her hands.

I nodded, still at a loss for words. What had she come here to talk to me about?

"And I can tell that you don't really know what to do or react to that," She continued.

I looked down.

She had hit the nail right on the head.

"Don't worry. I'm not here to ridicule you or anything, just hear me out."

"Okay," I whispered back.

She smiled and nodded, throwing an arm around my shoulders and jumping into whatever she was going to tell me, "I was a lot like you when Ed started to show he cared for me. Not sure what to do, or how to react, or how to handle the situation. I didn't know because I'd never learned how couples were supposed to interact. But we made due. Of course…Ed hadn't known how they interacted either. So it was new to both of us. Just like it's new to both you and Rin. Up until now your relationship has been based on life or death situations. So now that it's all calm for the moment, neither of you know what to do. And I bet I can tell what you're thinking."

I was shocked. Everything she was saying was completely true. This was exactly how it was…

Her voice softened, "You're afraid."

More surprise…I just stared at her, trying not to let my jaw hang open.

"Afraid that you'll push him away by accident, afraid of not doing something right, afraid of not being good enough, afraid that you'll upset him by saying or doing something wrong."

I nodded slowly, she was still completely and utterly correct.

"I just wanted to give you my advice. Don't be afraid to say how you feel. Don't let those fears run how you react. Go with what feels right. You'll know exactly what to do. Okay? He loves you. And I know you love him too. So don't let fears get in the way of your relationship."

I smiled at her, knowing she was right. My fears were ridiculous. I'd know what to do, "Thank you, Winry."

She nodded, still smiling, "Now get some sleep."

She gave me a squeeze and stood, walking out and closing the door behind her. I still wondered what made her come talk to me, but I decided not to question it anymore. I was too tired to think about it.

Suddenly, I couldn't bare sleeping alone, and stood, quietly shuffling to the door. I carefully opened the door to find that Winry had already retreated to her and Ed's room, and stepped out into the hallway. I crept down the hallway to Rin's room, and outside of the closed door. Gently I eased the doorway open, and slipped into the room, closing the door quietly behind me.

The room held two beds, on opposite sides of the room and two dressers on the same wall, each with their own lamps on them.

On the bed on the left, Dennis slept curled in a tight ball, with the blankets heaped on top of him, his chest rising and falling gently. I grinned when I noticed that he was wearing a jacket I knew belonged to Jason.

On the bed to the right was Rin. My golden angel.

He slept on his side, shirtless, allowing me to see his muscled chest and scars. His hair was free from its usual tie and was spread around on the pillow. His face was relaxed and open, causing him to look years younger. His arms were bent slightly, as though he was reaching out for something.

I shuffled across the room, and gently eased myself under the covers, curling on my side under Rin's arm. I smiled, as Rin stirred slightly, his head turning towards me, and a small smile gracing his still sleeping features. Pressing my face into his scared shoulder I felt Rin's arm wrap around me, and felt myself relax fully into his side.

Breathing in the pure sent of Rin, I sighed happily, and slept.

* * *

><p><strong>{And that's that! Yay!}<strong>

**As we explained before, the next chapter might not be for a while, due to what's going on in both our lives! **

**Love always! **

**QUOTE **

**"If it's possible for one person to be hurt by another, then it's possible for that person to be healed by another."**

**{Also, let's see if anyone catches the reference in the chapter!}**


	20. Chapter 18

**Uh… *cough* hi…**

**{Lookie here! We're not dead! Somehow…}**

**{One word. College.} **

**You can say that again…**

**{of course, this entire past year was pretty bad…}**

**Ugh, but hey! We're gonna make the most out of this new year!**

**But we haven't forgotten about you all! {Yeah! Thank you guys so much for all the amazing support you guys have shown us through all of the bad stuffs we've had to deal with this past year!}**

**{But I think we're both excited to let you guys know that we're almost done! After this chapter, we'll only have one more chapter, and the Epilogue!}**

**And better yet! They've already been written! {And Edited!} **

**So that means…**

**{We'll be posting them within a few days of each other!} **

**Yay!**

**{So thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to read our baby here, and for all you're patience if you have been following us!}**

**REVIEWS**

**Kakkorat is Cake: {Naturally, this past holiday season was pretty painful, without him, but we were able to remember my grandfather with smiles and laughter : ) Thank you so much for your time to read this! I'm glad you read it too! Lol} Wow…was the last time we updated really in July? Dang…sorry about that! Time sure got away from us. Guess we posted that before my last surgery… Thank you so much for sticking though with us! The waits not been kind…we appreciate the support!**

** : {First, thank you so much for reading through this! And I think I can say for both of us, that when we do have the time to work on this, we put as much effort that we can afford and feel the need to really push what we can do within our own writing. Second, I find that when I do write I can find out new things that I never realized about myself and the world.} We spend hours planning when we're not stressing over college or other things life throws at us. So of course lots of thought is put into things like what you'd mentioned. We also like to keep things pretty close to real life, even if this is a fanfiction. Haha. Thank you for being patient. We're so sorry about the wait!**

**Mixmax300: {Thank you so much for sticking with us for so long! I'm glad that you really enjoy our writing!} I'd like to apologize again for the stupidly long wait…but thank you so much for being so supportive. We're glad you're enjoying our little story. ****J**

* * *

><p><em>Rin was standing on a hill. <em>

_A warm breeze ruffled his hair, as the sky lightened to a dark blue. _

_"Daddy! Come on! We gotta get good seats!" _

_In the distance, he noticed two silhouettes quickly making their way up a separate hill, one substantially smaller than the other. He continued to watch as the smaller figure pulled the larger one up the hill, to sit on the top, in the grass. _

_As the figures settled in the grass he turned towards the east, just in time to see the distant sun break the horizon line. Dazzling lines of orange streaked across the sky, staining the scattered clouds blue, pink and silver. _

_"I'm gonna fly!"_

_The small voice rang from the figures sitting on the hill, as the smaller figure stood, her head not even breaching the larger. She danced, skipping around the larger figure, bubbly laughter drifting lazily through the air. _

_Deciding that the laughter was vaguely familiar, Rin started walking to approach the silhouettes on the opposite hill. _

_Not two steps later he felt an icy chill grasp him, chilling him to the bone._

_The light of the sunrise was fading, as was the hill besides him. They seemed to get farther away with every second, the bubbly laughter getting softer and softer. _

_Darkness slowly started to envelope the scenery in front of him, as the colors faded to grays. _

_The warmth he had been feeling before disappeared in an icy embrace, his lungs filling with ice water and his heart freezing into a block. _

_Choking out a shout he struggled to move his limbs, needing to get back to the warmth, and color. _

_With a shocked gasp, he felt fire rip across his back, as he was suddenly back in that concrete room. He thrashed against the winding chains pulling him apart. Liquid fire dripped down his back, seeping deep into the open gashes lining his spine. _

_Suddenly all of the pain disappeared, as the cool concrete walls shattered, streams of color dancing across his vision. _

_He was back on the hill. _

_A gentle touch stole away the lingering chill in his bones, replacing it with a warm glow. _

_Rin turned, finding Pace standing there with that beautiful smile, and wrapped his arms around her. Her body radiated warmth, love. _

_He was safe._

_She was safe._

* * *

><p>When I woke up the next morning I was curled up facing the wall with Rin around me, his arm tucked under his head. His hair was a mess, and I'm sure mine was no better, his eyes were still closed.<p>

I watched him for a moment, watching his chest rise and fall gently, a small smile gracing his face. Looking around I noticed that Dennis had already been up, and had already made his bed. The room was empty besides the two beds with little side tables and lamps, a dresser that stood between the two. The general lack of furniture made the room seem orderly, and clean.

Looking back down to Rin his eyes were open and he was smiling at me, "Good morning, Beautiful."

I blushed lightly and smiled back, "Good morning."

He sat up slightly, leaning on his elbow, causing the blanket to fall from his chest. I always managed to forget how fit he was until I saw him without a shirt on.

Realizing I was staring I blushed and looked away.

"Ready for breakfast?" He asked me, his voice as soft as ever with that early morning grit to it.

I smiled and nodded in response.

He pushed the covers away from him and for the first time I realized he'd only been in his boxers. I watched as he walked towards the dresser. His legs were very pale, but nicely toned. As he pulled on some plaid pants and a tank top I slid away from the bed. I'd been wearing a tank top and shorts to bed, but something about him just wearing boxers was kinda cute.

We headed down for breakfast. He pushed me lightly when we'd reached the bottom of the stairs, grinning playfully. I smiled and pushed him back. Rin grabbed my hand and pulled me in for a hug.

Ed, Al, Winry, Dennis, Nelly, Mr. McAnderson, and my parents all sat or stood around the dining room table. Not discussing anything of importance, but just talking about what a group of normal people talked about. When we entered the room no one really looked up at us. Dennis smiled shyly and offered his seat to me after I'd grabbed some food. I smiled gratefully and took a seat next to my father.

"Good morning, Baby Girl," He smiled, placing a hand on my thigh.

I put a hand on his shoulder, "Good morning, Daddy."

Rin stood behind me as we ate our oat meal.

I was staring out the window as the others talked. It was cold outside still. Signs of snow still littered the ground, even though it was melting rapidly, but it was no longer that pure white that it had been. The sun was up, but I knew it wouldn't be warm and I was glad for the hot breakfast.

"Good cooking, Roy," Riza had mentioned.

He smiled, "Thanks, Riza."

"Yeah! Good cooking Colonel!" Ed smirked, Alphonse giggling next to him.

I could feel the rage radiating off of him and I couldn't help but smile.

My father didn't even bother to say anything, instead choosing to chuck the rest of his apple in Ed's direction, surprisingly accurate.

Ed ducked out of the way, chuckling lightly while putting his hands in the air, "Not sorry."

Alphonse shoved his brother lightly, "Brother."

"Alright, alright. I'm sorry, Roy," Ed surrendered.

"Damn right you are," My father glowered.

As we all dispersed after breakfast, most of us ended up in the living room, awaiting the usual morning bathroom shuffle. The girls are upstairs and the boys downstairs. We went oldest to youngest so, so naturally I went last for the girls. Fast showers had to be taken or there'd be no hot water for the last person, and even still the water was barely luke warm.

After a while of sitting in the living room the adults dispersed to do their own thing, Winry went to check on Trish. Riza went with Nelly to go shopping. Roy, Ed, and Al were talking in the kitchen. Leaving Rin, Dennis and I sitting on the couches staring at each other.

Dennis clearly had questions but didn't want to disrupt the silence.

Finally Rin said what I'd been thinking, "If you've got questions, ask them."

Dennis seemed surprised at first and launched right into a rapid succession of questions.

"Are you guys from the same town? How long had you been there? How's your back, Rin? What'd they do to you in the prison? Why have alchemists been separated? Why did Maliki go crazy? Why am I here? Did you guys have schooling in the town? Is there a reason you guys are always in danger?"

Clearly Jason had told his younger brother nothing about the situation. Rin and I looked at each other, surprised at his lack of knowledge.

"We are from the same town…Pisu. We'd been there for basically all of our lives up until recently. We did have schooling, but it probably isn't as good as the Central schools." I responded, curious as to why Jason had told him so little.

Rin followed up with his questions about his back and the time in prison, "They'd taken me to a torture room and whipped me to get where Pace and the others were. It's fine now, just scarred."

Dennis looked at him, wonder on his face, "Do you mind if I see…?

Rin looked at me and I shrugged. I didn't see why not unless he was against it.

Rin lifted his shirt and turned around so that his back was to Dennis.

Dennis gasped, "That looks painful…"

Lowering his shirt Rin sat back down, "It was for a while, now its healed up and fine."

"To answer your question about why alchemists had been separated," I continued on with the answering, "Maliki is an angry Ishvalan who has a grudge against every other alchemist in the world. So he had us locked away and now that some of us are hiding beneath his nose, he's losing his mind."

Dennis nodded, but didn't really have anything to say in response.

Rin answered the last question quickly, "You're here because your brother wanted to know you're safe."

Dennis just continued nodding, clearly at a loss for words.

After a while Dennis stood and went upstairs.

"Why do you think Jason told him so little?" Rin asked me in a hushed voice.

I looked up at him, "I'm not so sure. Maybe he just didn't want to worry him…or didn't want to get him more excited or nervous than he already was."

"Yeah…maybe," Rin whispered, pulling me closer to him. I leaned into his chest.

It was nearly time…nearly time for the final battle. I was worried about how it would go and I prayed for everyone's safety.

Eventually Rin and I stood and went off to do our respective chores that we'd been given. Neither of us complained considering that we'd been staying here for so long that chores was the least we could do to repay the McAndersons.

* * *

><p>Three days later we were all meeting to go over how the plan would go and who would be doing what and where and when. Jason was the last to get there, saying that his commanding officer had been keeping him late and apologizing for his tardiness. Although none of us really minded, it's not like we have much to do anyway, we just brushed it off and let Elicia start the meeting.<p>

"Okay everyone!" She started, "In two days we're putting the plan into action. I'd just like to make sure that everyone will be ready to do their respective jobs when the time comes."

Everyone nodded, we all understood what we were goning to be doing. We've had nothing else to think about lately.

We went over the plan quickly, everyone knowing fully well what their part was. Even still Elicia had to make sure, so we went over the plan a few times more.

Ed looked at her, confused, "We didn't miss anything…"

"Yes you did," She said matter-of-factly.

"Stay safe," We heard Mr. McAnderson say from behind us.

We nodded in response.

"Thank you, Graham!" Elicia stated, "Stay safe!"

And with that we were released to do our own bidding for the remainder of the day and tomorrow.

As we all went our separate ways I became a walking ball of stress. I constantly worried about what could go wrong. Who could get hurt. I thought up different scenarios where different people get hurt and try to imagine how I'd manage to stop it.

I thought while I was doing my chores. Worried while I would walk around. I was a constant worrier. And yet, I managed to make it to where no one noticed. I smiled at Rin when we passed. I greeted everyone. No one was suspicious. I didn't want them to worry about me.

I went to bed still worrying about what could possibly go wrong. Maliki could slip away. Anyone could get hurt. We could all do something stupid and get ourselves killed. Literally anything was viable to go wrong. And with our luck…I was willing to bet that everything could go wrong.

That night was a restless night. I could barely sleep and I didn't want to disturb Rin and Dennis.

So I'd lay there, my worries all present and wondering why I wasn't asleep.

What if Rin got hurt again? What if my dad got hurt again? What if my mother got hurt? What if Maliki decided to just quit and attack us from behind while we're trying to prevent the military from attacking us?

I worried about Rin and mine's relationship as well…like…what if he started to hate me because he's starting to see who I really am? What if I do something and he gets angry? What if I say something wrong? Will he still love me after all of this? Or will we go our separate ways? God…I hope he still loves me…

Once I finally fell asleep it was around four in the morning and I knew I'd have to get up soon anyways.

The next morning was a blur of breakfast and showers and small talk and chores.

Tomorrow was the day and everyone was feeling it. Everyone was quieter today. No one said much. Everyone was just lost in their own little worlds. We acknowledged each other, but no one really had a full conversation. Eventually everyone just slid into their respective rooms. Either to take naps or just think about things.

I sat in my own room staring out my window. The sky was dark, almost like a forewarning of what could come. There was a chill in the air and I curled up into a ball on my bed and stared at my feet.

My door was open and I could see as people walked by. Occasionally Rin would walk by and smile at me. I wanted to know what he was thinking, but I never asked. He'd then frown and walk away.

My father walked by as well. I was so proud of him. He didn't need help anymore and he didn't look like he was lost anymore. He's the strongest man I know…and yet he feels so weak.

I was sad to be completely honest. Not about tomorrow. Not about Rin or my dad. But the air was filled with this silent sadness. An anxious sadness that hung very heavy. Everyone felt it.

I don't know how long I'd been sitting here, I assume it was hours, but Rin wondered in and sat down on the bed next to me.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked me softly.

I shrugged, not wanting him to know that I was worried about tomorrow and the rest of the plan, "Just my part in the plan and when and where I'm supposed to be and what I'm to be doing."

He nodded, "I've been thinking about that, too."

Just then Winry walked by and waved at us, smiling gently. We waved back and she moved on, probably looking for Ed.

Rin continued to make small talk with me, "The weather should be warming up soon."

And he was right. The snow was completely gone and even the darkening sky didn't feel so cold anymore.

"That's good," I whispered.

We were close enough touch if one of us just leaned over one inch, but neither of us did. It was almost as if there was this invisible barrier between us.

"What else are you thinking?" He asked me.

I knew he knew that I wasn't just thinking about the plan or the weather.

Shrugging again I said, "Not much."

He sighed and leaned back against my head board. His arms were crossed, a frown spreading across his face.

Even frowning he was as handsome as ever. His golden hair was tied back again, his bangs falling into his eyes. His eyes themselves were a mix or worry and something I couldn't quite decipher. He wore a loose gray t-shirt with a dark blue hoodie, and jeans, his feet bare.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it again.

We sat in the silence for a while. His frown making me more nervous than I'd been to begin with.

After a while he sat up again, keeping his arms crossed and leaving his hair in his eyes.

"Do you trust me?" He asked me, his voice serious and tight.

I blinked, "O-of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"

"You're not telling me things," He said, his eye brows furrowing.

My chest tightened. I could barely breathe. I wish he hadn't said anything…I can't speak.

He moved so that he was sitting cross legged in front of me, "Pace?"

I still couldn't speak. My throat and chest tight. I curled up tighter.

"Pace! Say something! Say anything!" He said, his voice rising.

I flinched, "I-I'm sorry, Rin…"

"Is that it? Is that all you can say?"

"Rin, I…" My chest hurt, "I don't know what to say…"

He stood and got up, pacing around my room. He was angry.

"You could start by opening up and telling me what's really on your mind!" He nearly shouted.

"Why not!? It should be easy to tell the person you love anything, right?"

"…right…"

"So then why won't you tell me what's really on your mind? I know it's not just the plan. I can see in your eyes that that's not it." His arms had come away from his chest. His arms were now at his sides, his hands clenched.

I looked away from him. I didn't have anything to say. I didn't want him to know what I'd been thinking.

"How about this, "He said, his voice hard, "Do you love me?"

My eyes shot up to his. I was surprised to see that they were so angry. There was a deep pain I'd never noticed. And, for the first time, he held some aggression towards me.

I panicked, "Y-yes! O-of course I-I do!"

"Then talk to me Goddamit!" He shouted.

And suddenly. I shrunk. I became so small in the world that I wish I could've just disappeared.

He looked at me expectantly. Waiting for me to say something. Waiting for me to just open up and tell him everything. But I couldn't. It wasn't that easy.

With a final, tormented, angry look, Rin stormed out of my room, slamming my door closed behind him.

I sat there for a moment, staring at the closed door, almost expecting him to come back. But he didn't. I felt numb. Tears welled in my eyes, but I couldn't feel them. He hated me.

I laid down, still curled up in a ball, and cried into my pillow.

* * *

><p>I'm not sure when, but eventually I fell asleep and awoke again to the sound of my door opening. I half expected it to be Rin when I opened my eyes, but instead I found my father.<p>

"Hey, Baby girl," He whispered. He hadn't quite learned the layout of my room so he shuffled forward slowly, searching for the edge of my bed.

I yawned and stretched, but didn't say anything. Sitting up I waited for him to sit down with me.

He found my bed and sat down across from me. His legs crossed and hands on his knees. His blank eyes tried to find my location, but not really landing on me. His hair was messy and I could tell that he was worrying too.

"How are you doing?" He asked me, scooting a little closer.

I shrugged, "I'm fine."

He raised his eyebrows. He knew I wasn't fine. He knew me better than that.

"I heard you and Rin had a fight," He mentioned, trying to keep the conversation light with the tone of his voice.

I nodded, but didn't say anything.

"I've also noticed your personal presence has been quite tight and worried lately. What are you worried about, Pace?" He knew I wouldn't respond, so he kept going, "You know you can't control everything, right? You can't protect everyone. And worrying about it won't help."

"I know, Dad…" I muttered, knowing he was right.

"So then why do you worry? Do you still feel like everything is your fault?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but I closed it again.

My father nodded, knowing that my silence was a yes.

He sighed, "Oh, Pace. Please don't worry about everyone like this. Everything will turn out."

"But…what if it doesn't? What if everything goes wrong? What if…someone dies?"

He reached out and cupped the side of my face in his hand, "Oh but Pace, what if everything goes right?"

At that, I didn't have anything to say. I hadn't really thought about what would happen if everything had gone right.

"Pace, please stop worrying so much. I can tell it's tearing you apart." My father said, pulling me into him.

I nodded, "Okay," I lay into him, "I'll try, Daddy."

We hugged for a while before the smell of food wafted up to my room.

"Smells like dinners ready," My father said, sniffing the air.

I nodded, "Smells good."

And with that we stood and went down to dinner together.

Rin sat on the opposite end of the table and avoided eye contact with me. I kept my head down and ate as quickly as I could.

The adults talked endlessly about nothing important and I just wished to get out of there. I could feel the tension between Rin and me, and I just didn't want to be there.

When I finished I found myself outside. It was starting to get cooler and I knew it'd be bitterly cold by the time the sun went down, but I didn't mind.

I sat on the swing, curling into a small ball as I stared off into the distance. As the sun slid down it became colder, but I never noticed.

"Aren't you cold?" A voice asked, as a blanket was draped across my shoulders.

I broke out of my thoughts and looked up to find Ed standing in front of me.

"Mind if I join you?" He asked, gesturing to the empty side next to me.

I shook my head and he sat down.

We sat in silence for a while before he broke it again, "Sure is pretty out tonight."

And he was right. Besides the bitter cold you could start to see the starts in the sky as the light faded. There were a few clouds here and there, but none that went on forever. The trees seemed to whisper in the wind, their bare branches waiting for spring. Spring, of course, was just beginning and there were signs of green here and there. Buds on the trees, the stray green strand of grass. The world was turning, and it was beautiful.

"So, how are you doing, Pace?" Ed asked, turning slightly to look at me.

My head turned towards his, my eyes searching for his in the dark. When I found them all I could see was how similar he and Rin looked. The same golden eyes, the golden hair. Of course, there were parts that were different. Rin had his mother's nose and mouth.

I shrugged, I knew he was referencing the fight I'd had earlier, but I didn't really know what he was going to say.

"I'm sorry, Pace. Rin can sometimes misunderstand things. He hasn't exactly grown up with a woman around to show him how women react to certain situations." Ed told me.

I nodded, "I know, but he didn't have to blow up on me…"

Ed chuckled lightly, "No, he didn't. And he'll learn, but it'll take time. Both of you grew up without a mother and that makes life a little harder. A boy growing up with two men remodels who also didn't have ladies in their lives doesn't exactly show a boy how to act around a woman."

I understood, of course, but I just wish Rin would've been more understanding.

"_But_, while yes, Rin didn't need to blow up," Ed continued, looking me in the eye. "I can see why he did. Believe me, Terrin is a very understanding kid. But try to look at it from his point of view. Would you like it if he was clearly in turmoil and you wanted to help, only to have him shut you out?"

I looked down, absorbing his words, "No…"

"I know that you've probably heard this before, and you might hear it many more times, but you need to know that you aren't alone. It's not healthy to just bottle up everything up. Everyone worries. Everyone has fears. I know for a fact that Rin is afraid for you. I know that he's afraid for everyone. I can see it in the way he walks, talks, and sits. And I can also bet that he can see all of this in you."

"Rin will realize that he has misunderstood. I believe Roy is gonna talk to him sometime. As his father, and the one he grew up with, I am responsible for his responding in such a way. You see, "Ed sighed, "That's how guys react with other males. We get angry, we shout, and we're aggressive. Rin never had a lady remodel to look up to and therefore doesn't understand that females are gentler than males are. They may be just as strong emotionally, but they handle certain situations in different ways."

"I just never realized that his upbringing would have had such an impact upon how he treated women," I told him, putting my chin on my knee, "I thought maybe he'd learned how to act at school."

Ed laughed at that, "No, Pace. Rin never talked to anyone in school. No girls, not even guys his age. You're the first person his age to talk to him and take an interest in him. Other than you he's had Al and I, who, granted, aren't really the most qualified to raise a child."

It was my turn to laugh, "You did a fine job, Ed. It's hard to raise a child by yourself. I'd know because my dad never really knew either. But both of you did what you had to do, and you did it the only way you knew how."

I could feel Ed's smile on me, "Thank you, Pace. No one's ever told me that they thought I'd raised Terrin the right way. I worry about him sometimes. I know both your father and I feel the two of you would've done much better with your mothers. But there wasn't much we could do about that."

I shrugged, "I think it's hard to raise a child by yourself whether you're the mother of the father. There are just certain things the mother can teach and the father can't, or the father can teach and a mother can't. It goes two ways."

Ed seemed to be in awe, "Ya know, Pace. Your father doesn't give himself enough credit. He's raised a very bright young woman who's wise beyond her years."

This caused me to blush slightly and I'm glad it was dark enough that Ed couldn't see how red my cheeks were, "Besides tonight Rin has always been quite the gentleman. I think it's just certain situations that bring out how he didn't have a mother. But that's not necessarily a bad thing."

Ed's hand was on my shoulder, "And if I know Rin, he'll realize he did something wrong."

I nodded and his hand lingered a little longer before he stood, "I'm gonna go inside and I suggest you do the same, it's getting a little too chilly to be outside. And it's late."

When he mentioned how late it was I yawned and nodded. I followed him inside and then went up to my bedroom. Rin's room was just beyond mine on the opposite side. I nearly went to his room, but decided against it and walked into mine. I stripped and fell into bed, falling asleep nearly instantly.

* * *

><p>The next morning I woke early and immediately decided I'd shower and do my chores before the rest of us got up. Although, Nelly was making breakfast when I got out of the shower, disrupting my plan. So I asked her if there was anything I could do to help her with breakfast.<p>

She smiled at me, "Sure, honey! Could you cut up the fruit?"

I nodded, returning her smile. I really didn't mind helping with breakfast and I was eager to do anything to keep myself busy.

We made small talk as I cut the fruit and she made waffles. Eventually everyone wondered into the kitchen and took their places. I'd long since finished cutting the fruit when Rin got there. I decided I'd sit on the counter today rather than at the table. Everyone, except Rin and I, exchanged "good morning"'s and "how did you sleep"'s.

Although today was the day the plan was set into action, nobody seemed particularly tense. Neither of us were involved and it would just be Scar and Jason. They'd meet somewhere not far from here so that we'd be able to know what was going on.

Everyone ate silently, thanking Nelly and I for making breakfast afterwards and going off the take showers or do chores.

I helped Nelly wash the dishes and put them away before I went to do my own chores.

* * *

><p>Jason glanced over at where he had lost seen Scar skulking around the corner, before turning to address the officer beside him.<p>

"Alright, I need you to keep an eye out for a tall man, with a large X shaped scar over his face," He continued describing Scar. "He's been identified as a rebel commander."

"I will keep an eye out, Sir," The officer saluted, as Jason finished.

"If you do encounter him, _do not_ confront him. He is labeled as highly dangerous. Contact me immediately," Jason stressed, causing the officer to cringe, before saluting again. With a nod, Jason turned and started down the street away from the alley way he knew Scar was.

A shout from the officer behind him was the only warning that he had, before Jason felt a solid fist smash into his back.

He grunted and reached for his Taser, something that they had agreed on previously, and tried to jam it into Scar's side. The older man was surprisingly agile though, as he gracefully twisted away.

"Lieutenant General Lund!" the officer hung back, keeping himself distanced from the clearly dangerous man.

"Don't come closer!" Jason shouted, leaping to the side as Scar lunged again. "Call for backup, NOW!"

The officer was quick to pull up his communicator, and shout for backup, as Scar was able to tackle Jason to the ground.

There was a rush of sirens and shouting, as a patrol of backup that had been nearby launched around the corner.

"Don't come near!" Jason shouted, as he used his legs to push Scar away. As he jumped on the older, they met eyes and Jason caught his minuet nod.

With a yell, Jason jammed the Taser into Scar's side, causing the larger man to yell and spasm, falling to his knees.

Panting and already feeling the bruising on his back, Jason roughly pushed Scar's arms behind him into cuffs.

"Sir!" there was a stampede of footsteps as the other soldiers rushed forward. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Jason grunted to them, as he pulled the still spasming Scar to his feet. "Let's just get him to the prison."

Luckily the backup that had come came with patrol vehicle, that Jason was able to push Scar into the back of.

_'Sorry about that…the spasms should disappear in a few minutes,_' he breathed quietly into Scar's ear, as he pulled the seatbelt around the large man.

"Oh, Darling!" as Jason turned to talk to the officer driving the vehicle and older woman approached him. "Please! Use this to keep down the swelling!"

Jason looked down at what looked like a frozen bag of corn wrapped in a small tea towel in amusement, the woman reminded him of Nelly, "Thank you, ma'am." In reality, Jason hadn't even noticed the growing bruise that had started to form on his cheek.

He smiled to the woman one more time before turning to the officer, who was one of his buddies from the academy.

"You have the shittest of luck don't you man," He snorted at Jason, who was gingerly pressing the corn to his face. "You discover those rebels at the ball, manage to punch a spy commander in the face, have a breakout, and get attacked by a rebel commander…You must be on the hit list or something."

Jason nodded, internally laughing at the entire situation, "Tell me about it."

"But hey, at least your little bro got shipped out to your grandparent's place out in the country," The officer continued, as Jason crossed to the other side of the car to climb in. "You don't gotta worry about them using him as incentive."

_'That's exactly why I had him moved to Nelly's…only for the other side,'_ Jason shuttered at the thought of his baby brother being used as a hostage. "Don't even joke about that, man."

The ride to the prison was quick, because traffic moved out of the way of the military car. Despite the quick ride, the processing and usual jobs that came with entering a new prisoner was far from fast. By the time that they were finished, and Scar was to be moved into a cell Jason was aching to lay down and relax. Sometime between mugshots, and paperwork, Jason managed to sneak away long enough the call everyone back at Nelly's, if only for a little bit.

When it was finally time to take Scar to his cell Jason was relived to lead him by his bound arms, with four other officers. He had made sure to place him in a cell that would lead easily out of the prison, and made sure to press an extra key into Scar's hand, when he gave him a final shove into the cell.

They met eyes one last time, before Jason put on a cold front and turned away.

"You alright there, Sir?" One of the officers asked him, a young lad recently transferred in. "You look like you're ready to fall over."

"Nah, he's fine!" Marco, another buddy from the academy, answered for Jason.

Jason had to stifle a pained gasp, as Marco managed to slap right in the center of the large bruises he knew were already formed on his back.

"A nap would be nice," Jason nodded, as he pulled away from the group to head to his office. "But I have a shit ton of paperwork I gotta deal with."

Even then, he could use a nap.

'_Part one complete.'_

* * *

><p><strong><em>Earlier<em>**

After finishing all my chores, I decided I'd grab one of Nelly's many books and read on the arm chair in the living room. I read for a while and the time for Scar's and Jason's battle grew nearer. I kept reading. I wasn't particularly interested in the book but it kept me distracted until the time came and everyone gathered to wait for the news on what happened.

It was one in the afternoon, Jason and Scar would fight at about one fifteen or so. Now, everyone was a little tenser than they had been this morning. Rin sat on the floor leaning against the closet we'd hid in when Nelly thought the Central police had been here, and it turned out to be Jason and Dennis. My parents sat on the love seat across from me and Ed and Winry, who had come back just after breakfast, stood against a wall. Ed had his arm around Winry in a way that showed he loved her.

Dennis stood next to Rin, Alphonse sat on the long couch with Elicia, who'd also shown up after breakfast, along with Nelly and Mr. McAnderson.

And we waited. About seventeen minutes later we heard the sirens and we knew that the battle had started. Jason must've called for back up to get Scar to the Central prison. The sirens came and went and then we waited for Jason's call.

Ed and Winry and my parents had started playing cards on the coffee table, my mother whispering my father's cards in his ear. Rin and Dennis chatted quietly on the far side of the living room and Alphonse and Elicia talked about random things. The telephone was on the wall between the dining room and living room, and we all waited impatiently.

When the telephone rang about an hour later we all jumped. Everyone stopped what they'd been doing and watched as Ed jumped up and ran to the phone.

"Hey Jaosn! ...mhm…okay…that's good…yeah yeah…We'll be ready….mhm…..okay…..see you in a couple days…buh-bye." Ed hung the phone back on the hook and we waited for him to relate the news.

Ed turned towards us and said, "Everything went smoothly and just as planned. Now we're just waiting for about a week so nothing seems suspicious."

Everyone nodded and dispersed. I went back to reading the book I wasn't interested in and I noticed that Rin lingered just a little longer before leaving the living room.

* * *

><p><em>'Damn it! What's wrong with me!' <em>Rin thought as he watched Pace pull the book back up to her face and continue reading. _'All this after I promised to love her…'_

He walked away slowly, as if waiting for her to call him back to her. She didn't, but he wished she had.

Going up the stairs he entered his room to find Roy sitting on the edge of his bed. Dennis wasn't there and Rin was glad he wasn't. He wasn't sure he wanted to have this conversation.

"Hey, Rin," Roy said, motioning for him to sit down, "How are you?"

Rin shrugged then realized that Roy wouldn't know he'd shrugged and said, "I'm fine. What about you?"

"I'm doing just fine, thanks for asking," Roy nodded as Rin sat down.

"So…" Roy started after a few seconds, "You fought with Pace."

Rin nodded, "She just won't open up to me…"

"Believe it or not, she's already more open with you than she was with me for a while," Roy told Rin.

Rin looked at him in shock, "What? No way…"

Roy nodded sadly, "Not having a mother hurt her. And have a blind father wasn't easy either. She felt this need to protect me and not make me worry."

"She does that with me too…" Rin muttered, clearly not happy about it.

"You see…" Roy said, his blank eyes wondering towards the floor, "Pace feels this need to protect everyone. And if she feels like she can't do so, it hurts her. She worries tremendously about the people she loves. She wants to protect them, even if it hurts her."

Rin rolled his eyes, "I've noticed. But that doesn't mean she can't tell me her worries. Granted…I probably shouldn't have snapped at her…but I just couldn't believe she wouldn't tell me what she was thinking. It hurts that she refused to say anything."

Roy nodded, understanding what Rin was talking about, "I'm afraid that's just how she copes with worries. She gets closed off. The best way to handle that is to be patient and wait for her to come to you. She does open up…it just takes time."

"I guess I should apologize…right?" Rin said, looking down and twiddling his thumbs.

Roy nodded, "I'm sorry that you guys fought. I used to wonder why she wouldn't talk to me. It took me months to figure out why she would do that. Her mother does the same thing."

"Her mother…" Rin muttered.

"Yes," Roy said, chuckling lightly, "Her mother. Pace is so much like her mother that sometimes I wonder how she became like Riza without growing up with her. For instance, you and Ed are very very similar. But Pace and I…are similar in ways, but she is still more her mother."

Rin nodded, "I've noticed that, too. I just…I love Pace."

Roy smiled at that, a light happy smile, "I know you do. And I know she loves you, too. Just give her time. She'll open up."

Rin smiled and nodded, "Okay. Thanks Roy."

"Any time, Rin," Roy nodded, standing and making his way towards the door.

_She does love me!_ Rin thought. _It'll be okay. Everything will be okay._

* * *

><p>Later that night I lay in my bed. I was thinking about whether or not I should go find Rin, but I decided to pick up the book I'd been reading that day. I still wasn't very interested, but I couldn't leave it unfinished. I felt for the main character. I'm not sure why, but we felt relatable somehow.<p>

So instead of finding Rin I finished the book instead.

I woke late the next morning. I knew I'd missed breakfast so I just went to take a shower instead. I'd find a snack to eat when I finished my chores. I felt better today than I had all week. I wasn't as worried about everything as I had been. And I felt better about Rin and I as well.

When I finished my chores I found an apple and went outside to eat it. It wasn't quite warm enough yet so I wore a light sweater that was too big for me over a tank top and jeans. I slid my shoes on and walked outside.

It was still beautiful, just as it had been the night I sat here with Ed. I smiled as I recalled what he'd said about my father.

Biting into my apple I settled into the swing. It'd become one of my favorite spots to be lately. It was peaceful outside. Peaceful and not as hectic as inside the house.

I heard the door open when I finished my apple. Bending over I set it on the ground and made a mental note to grab it later. I didn't look at whoever was at the door, but I heard it close again and footsteps.

Those footsteps faltered when they got closer, but I still didn't look at who it was.

"P-pace…" I heard Rin's voice.

I looked over at him, "Hey, Rin."

He wore a classy, purple and blue, button-up plaid shirt that was untucked from his jeans.

"Can I..um…sit down with you?" He asked me. He was nervous.

I nodded and scooted over so I wasn't taking up so much space.

He sat down, causing the swing to rock gently, as I pulled my knees to my chest.

"Can we talk?" He asked, still nervous.

I, once again, nodded and continued to look ahead of me. I wasn't really sure how to react. Should I look at him? Should I keep my distance? I didn't know.

"I feel really bad about how I blew up at you the other day…" He started, the pain in his voice obvious, "I was just irritated that you wouldn't tell me what you were really thinking and I didn't handle it as well as I should have. I talked to your dad yesterday and he told me I should just be understanding and let you come to me…but I didn't know that then."

I nodded slowly, "That's usually the best. It took awhile for my dad to know that too…"

"He told me that also," He chuckled. His chuckle reminded me of Ed's from the other night.

I could tell he was still nervous. His hands were folded in his lap, his thumb nail scratching at the outside of his forefinger as he bit his lip.

"Are you mad at me?" He asked, his voice taunt.

Looking up at him I caught him biting his lip, his eyes filled with worry. I smiled at him and the worry faded a little, "No. I'm not mad at you."

He smiled. His usual brilliant smile that lit his golden eyes. It's been a while since I've seen his smile.

"Oh my gosh… I was so worried you'd hate me after I did that," He said, his voice lighter, softer, "I'm sorry again. I really could've handled that better. I'm just so glad you aren't mad at me."

"I was at first…I thought you hated me actually," I started, and watched his smile fall, "I cried, I won't lie. My dad came and talked to me before dinner. And then Ed talked to me out here after dinner. He told me a lot and I started to feel better."

Rin nodded grimly, a deep pain making itself known for a split second, "I saw you out my window…I was glad he brought you a blanket."

I nodded back, and smiled at him gently, "I knew you didn't mean to get mad at me like that. That you were just frustrated. I felt better knowing that. And…I'm sorry. I should have tried to talk to you. You were only worried about me, and I shut you out."

He returned my gently smile and grabbed my hand, "I love you, Pace. Please know that. I know I'm not always the easiest person to get along with…and I know I don't know a lot about ladies. But I love you and I will learn."

"I love you, too, Rin," I told him, turning to face him, "I know I'm not an easy person to work with either, but I'm glad we can work through things."

Rin was drawing tiny circles on the back of my hand, sending butterflies up my throat, "Always."

He looked up at me, his eyes meeting mine. The aggression gone, the anxiety gone, just love. His eyes slipped down to my lips, as my own did the same.

We kissed. At first it was just a few pecks here and there. But then they became more passionate. Lasting longer and longer. My brain shut down, and suddenly I didn't care that our parents were in the house behind us. His hands slid up my thighs and to my waist underneath my tank top, my skin buzzing where he touched me. My arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer and closer. Before I knew it I was laying down and he was on top of me, kissing me passionately as we strove towards each other. His hands slid farther up my sides, lingering at the sides of my bra. His kisses moved to my cheek and down my neck to my collar bone. My hands were at his shirt, starting to unbutton, slowly working my way down.

I had his shirt unbuttoned and my hands were on his waist. My own shirt had been pulled up and his hands on my chest, his mouth on my neck, when the door opened.

"Hey Paceeeeeee!" I heard Al say, quickly turning around, "Whoa! I-I s-sorry…should've…knocked."

Rin and I stopped kissing, removing our hands and looked over at Al, both of our faces as red as ripe cherries.

"I-I'm glad you two…two are doing good…and make ea-eachother happy…" He continued mumbling quickly, clearly embarrassed that he'd walked up on us in such a position.

I pulled my shirt back down and Rin buttoned his back up, before pulling me to nestle in his side.

"You can turn around again, Uncle," Rin told Al.

Al turned around slowly, his face as red as ours, "Sorry again…"

We shook our heads and muttered, "Our fault."

After the redness slipped away from our faces Alphonse walked up to us, "I need to talk to Pace."

Rin nodded, understanding that his uncle wanted him to leave us without me knowing. With a quick kiss to my forehead he stood and let Alphonse have his seat as he wondered back inside, a smile playing on his lips.

Still embarrassed Alphonse looked at me, "I have something I want to give you."

I nodded, not sure if I should say anything.

Al reached into his pocket and grabbed something, pulling it out I realized it was a bottle of clear liquid.

"It's called Life Water. Ed and I made it when we were in Xing." He explained.

He handed me the bottle, as I took it I asked, "What does it do?"

"Life Water is to be used only when needed most. So, in desperate situations. When you pour it out it will turn into an object that you need. Although sometimes the object won't make sense. I wanted you to have it because I think you could put it to better use than anyone else could." Al continued to explain.

"So it'll turn into an object that I need…when I need it most," I said, trying to understand.

Al nodded, "The object will most likely not be what you had in mind, however."

"Okay," I said, "I think I get it."

"Now," Alphonse said, his tone serious, "Only use it when you absolutely need to. Otherwise it won't work and it'll just have been wasted water."

That surprised me. I nodded and held the bottle in my hand, looking at it as it sloshed back and forth.

"Thank you, Al," I said, turning to him.

"You're welcome, Pace." He said smiling as he stood up, "Should I…um…go get Rin?"

I smiled, "No. I think I'm going to go inside now anyways."

He nodded and walked inside with me following him.

* * *

><p>A week later it was time for the plan to start. Todays the day that Scar breaks out and we have to be ready for the call from Jason to go protect Maliki<p>

All of us have showered and are wearing our 'ready for action' clothes. Nelly and Mr. McAnderson kept reiterating that no one should get hurt. . I had made sure that I had Al's bottle of Life Water in my pocket before we'd all gathered to wait.

I sat with Rin on the floor with our parents on the couches.

Elicia, Dennis, and Winry would be staying behind on this trip so that it would be Rin, my parents, Ed, Al, and I going. The only non-alchemist going was my mother.

And then the phone rings. Nelly answers but we're already rushing out the door. Brenda and Fury are already sitting outside the house in a large van, and were ready to take off, once all of us were all in. With Brenda clearly speeding we were there within minutes. And so was Scar.

Scar raged up the front steps with us closely following. All of the police were trying to stop all of us, but Scar wasn't stopped easily.

By the time we reached Maliki's door, Scar had already smashed through it.

Maliki screamed, "Guards! Help! Kill them! Kill them all!"

With a roar, Scar flung himself at Maliki, only to be caught and flung aside by a rock fist from Ed.

"President Maliki," My father said, using his Colonel voice, "Your guards are down, we're here to protect you!"

"No!" Maliki kept screaming, "Get out of here!"

Our group stood between Maliki and Scar. But Scar smashed through us and nearly got Maliki. If Maliki hadn't been as fast as he had been Scar would've gotten him. But in an instant he was away from Scar, between us, and up the stairs.

Maliki had stopped on the stairs. Our group stayed between Maliki and Scar, us backing slowly up the stairs as Scar advanced. We could hear the guards coming from down stairs. It was a standoff. Occasionally Scar lunged at the group, only to be caught in a quick spar with Ed or Al, all the while Riza shot back here and there, still missing him, but not making it obvious. These guys didn't know her nickname of Hawkeye.

After getting thrown again by Ed, Scar stood still breathing heavily. The soldiers had finally caught up, and lined up behind Scar. Scar stood in front of us, while Maliki cowered behind us. Everyone held their breath, waiting for someone to make the first move.

The air was tense, as both sides waited for the next move.

Hearing a shuffle behind me, I turned around, Maliki was _gone_.

* * *

><p><strong>WELL! {This is one of our largest chapters yet…}<strong>

**My god…**

**{Lol as we said before, the next chapter and epilogue are already written! So that means that we will post chapter 19 in about two or three days, depending on how much traffic this gets!}**

**And again, a big THANK YOU to every one of you {even you lurkers} that spend the time to read through this story!**

**{If you would spend just a little more time, I would love to hear about your thoughts! Each review lifts my heart just a little, and makes me feel all warm and fuzzy! Give me a reason to smile!} We both know each of us needs a reason to smile…**

**Quote time! **

**"Man poses. God disposes"**


	21. Chapter 19

**Alright, just as we said last time, here's the next chapter! **

**{Nothing for us to to say, except, thank you so much for your time! Enjoy!}**

* * *

><p>Gone.<p>

Yes, he'd managed to get away without anyone noticing. The plan was we keep him there, keep an eye on him, but nobody did.

I wondered if I should go after him myself.

Looking back at the rest of the group they were all very intensely focused on the battle. Brows crease, bodies tensed. The soldiers on the other side had guns raised, ready to shoot with the order from the highest rank. Scar crouched, tense, occasionally sending a warning crack of alchemy, but never hitting them. My father and mother never directly hit the soldiers either. Merely warning shots to get them to stay back. They had things under control here.

I ran up the stairs after Maliki.

* * *

><p>Shots were fired, alchemy used, and chaos roared. There was some minor shuffling in the ranks of the soldiers, someone moving their way through.<p>

Jason stepped forward causing all of the soldiers to cease fire.

"Lieutenant General, what're you doing?" Was heard through the ranks.

"Lieutenant General Lund, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Someone called out, clearly high in rank. Of course they'd known Jason was high in rank…but a Lieutenant General? Damn.

"Sorry General, I'm with the alchemists," Jason shouted back.

Gasps echoed throughout the chamber.

"And if you give me a minute to explain, I'll tell you why." He'd continued.

There was silence for a moment before this General responded, "You can't be serious boy."

"But I am General. I am because we've all been corrupted by a bitter man!" He shouted, gesturing to all of them with a sweep of his hands. "Corrupted and lied to. President Maliki is an Ishvalan!"

More gasps echoed through the hall.

"What's your evidence?" The General called out.

Jason turned to him, "Have you ever seen his eyes? They're slightly tinted red, because he's covering them up with alchemy. He's hiding that he can do alchemy. And yet there's signs of it all around the palace! And look what he's done to the Alchemists."

By the time he finished speaking, most of the soldiers had lowered their guns and nodded, seeing the logic he had. He was right. However, there was one person in the very front row who looked extremely offended that he'd even suggested that his ruler was something he wasn't. Conflict ran over his face. His gun trembled. His finger tightening on the trigger.

Time seemed to slow, as the shot ran out.

"TERRIN!"

Alphonse jumped into action, sprinting towards Rin with lightning speed. The bullet, racing in Rin's direction, would have hit Rin right in the stomach, potentially causing death.

With a mighty shove, Al pushed Rin aside, who yelped in surprise as he ended up sprawled on the floor.

Al let out a grunt of pain, as the bullet entered his lower chest, causing him to collapse in a heap.

"What are you doing, Boy?" The General shouted, "You just shot a man!"

Rin looked over at his Uncle, and crawled over to him, "Uncle…" Gently, Rin rolled him on to his back and sucked in a breath at the sight of the blossoming red staining the front of his shirt.

Alphonse gave Rin a gentle yet pained smile, then frowned, his eyes scanning the group behind him,

"W-where's Pace?"

Rin looked around but Pace was nowhere to be seen, and nor was Maliki…

"Oh god…" Rin whispered, "She went after him…"

"Alone?" Roy asked, worry riddling his face.

Jason looked over at the group, "Rin, what's wrong?"

"Pace's gone…"

Jason raised an eyebrow, not connecting that Maliki was gone too…

"And so is Maliki."

Jason turned to the soldiers, his eyes wide, "Fellow Soldiers of the Amerstrian Army, will you join me in fighting against this tyrannical and disillusioned President and restore the way the world had been when Alchemists and non-Alchemists lived together? Will you help me rejoin family members with their loved ones and free the Alchemists in the re-location camps?"

There was a long pause of silence before the crowd of soldiers started applauding with excitement.

"He knows how to make one hell of a speech" Alphonse said through gritted teeth.

"Dad!" Rin shouted.

Ed went to his son quickly and got down, looking at his brothers wound.

"I'll need to get the bullet out before sealing the wound. That won't be easy, Al." Ed told his brother, warning about the pain.

"Do it, brother." Alphonse gasped, gripping the sides of his shirt.

Ed drew his circle around Al, put his hands together out of habit, and forced them to the ground. The bullet clashed to the ground and blood flooded out of the wound, Alphonse strained not to cry out, and before they knew it the wound was sealed. Although the wound was closed, he let out a wheeze, and continued struggle to breath.

"Mr. McAnderson will have to look at that later just to make sure, but this will do for now." Ed said, standing and holding a hand out for Al to take.

"Thank you, Ed." He wound an arm Ed's shoulder and leaned heavily on his bother.

"Can we go find my daughter now?" Roy asked, clearly antsy and worried.

Everyone nodded, "Let's go find Pace."

* * *

><p>Panting, I hauled myself up the last set of stairs that Maliki had disappeared up.<p>

As I pushed through the large doors at the top of the stairs, I was surprised to feel wind whip at my hair, and the sun to bare down on my face.

We were on the roof.

Maliki was standing across from me, panting heavily.

"YOU!" He yelled, whipping around to stare at me with wild, red eyes.

"President," I answered, as he backed away from me.

"B-Back away! Don't come any closer!" Maliki's voice had a slight crack to it, as he continued to shuffle backwards. He let out a quick yelp as his foot caught on a ledge, causing him to fall backwards. He threw out a hand to catch himself, as he collapsed in a heap.

His shoulders shook as a broken sop escaped Maliki. Huge tears fell to the ground as his hands balled into fists, his fingernails scratching at the pavement of the roof.

"SHE WAS MY SISTER!" His voice cracked slightly, as he scrambled back again. "SHE WAS JUST A CHILD!"

"W-who?" I was afraid to ask, even though I had a pretty good idea who he was talking about.

"THEY. _YOU_. KILLED HER!" Maliki's eyes glistened with tears, as age-old pain glowed within the Ishvalan-red. "S-she was just a child…an innocent child. My baby sister…"

"I-it…it was my fault," His voice continued to crack, as he suddenly started to speak. "I had to study. For my exams. She was just trying to spend time with me…if. If I hadn't sent her to go play in the market she wouldn't have died. I'M ALONE! I KILLED HER! YOU KILLED HER!" Rage filled Maliki's voice, as he stumbled up, his eyes blazing with a touch of insanity. "ALCHEMISTS KILLED HER!"

Feeling desperate I shifted, and felt the small bottle of Life Water that Al had given me slosh in my pocket. Deciding that this was as dire as I could get at the moment, I pulled it out and pored it onto the ground. To my shock it glowed momentarily, before morphing into a graceful silver knife. As I quickly stooped to pick it up, I found that it fit in my hand perfectly. The handle was made of a white gem like substance, with swirling lines of blue, green and red dancing through it. Pulling it out of the smooth black sheath I could see the shining silver blade. Upon closer inspection I saw that there were delicate silver designs along the blade, and a deadly sharp blade.

For a moment I panicked. I didn't want to kill anyone! That would just defeat the whole purpose of trying for a peaceful change! Enough people have been hurt.

"MONSTERS! AS FAR FROM HUMAN AS YOU CAN GET!" Maliki was shouting, oblivious to what I had been doing. "ALCHEMISTS' AREN'T HUMAN! TAINTED! DIRTY! INHUMANE"

As he continued to yell, Maliki gestured wildly, causing blood from a cut on his hand to fly out and splatter on the ground and my shoe.

Glancing down at the blade in my hand, I realized what I had to do.

"Inhuman?" I spoke quietly, yet loud enough that Maliki cut off his shouting and stared at me with wild eyes. "You call alchemists inhuman? Yet, don't we think? Do we not feel? Don't we love?"

Maliki continued to stare at me with wild eyes, as I braced myself, and drew the blade against the palm of my hand. I winced at the burn, but pushed away the pain. Holding my now bleeding palm up towards Maliki I continued, "Do we not bleed? How are we inhuman? How are we tainted? How are we dirty? Is my blood black? Does it look any different from yours? Blood consists of red and white blood cells, and plastids within plasma. Break us down enough and you end up with the same components: water, carbon, ammonia, lime, phosphorous, salt, saltpeter, sulfur, fluorine, iron, and silicone."

Squeezing my burning hand I felt blood slide between my fingers, and drip off of my hand to the ground. Maliki's eyes followed the drop, as it descended, only to land next to his own blood, and mix.

As the red droplets mixed and became one, I continued in a soft voice, "I'm truly sorry about your sister…but you need to understand that it wasn't the alchemists that killed her! Yes, alchemists played a major part in the war, but believe me, they regret it! I can hear that regret every night in my father's pleas to make it stop. You said it yourself, you grew up without parents! Moving alchemists into those camps just did the same thing! It tore families apart. Lives!"

Maliki's eyes snapped up to my face, as I shouted.

There was the thundering sound of footsteps coming up the stairs behind me, along with the distance shout of my name.

Drawing in a final breath, I met eyes with Maliki, and saw a shine of tears, "Why tear apart families? Why punish those who have done nothing but want to help?"

The door behind me crashed open, as a large group burst through them, just as Maliki feel forward onto his knees.

As a few soldiers rushed forward to restrain him, I was pulled in to a set of strong, familiar arms.

"Daddy," I whimpered, feeling all the strength I had in my body drain away.

"Shhh, baby girl," My father tucked my head under his chin, as his strong arms supported me. "It's all gonna be okay. It's over."

"It's all over," the soft sound of Terrin's voice broke the flood gates, as I was passed off into his arms. "It's all over…" slowly we sunk to kneel on the ground, entangled within each other's arms. I could feel the wetness of his tears, as he buried his face in my hair. Pulling away slightly, I sniffled and laughed slightly, as the sight of his handsome face covered in joyful tears.

As I clutched at his arms, Rin noticed that his arm was covered in blood. My blood.

"What happened?" he gently inspected my hand, before quickly tearing off a strip of his shirt to cover my hand and gently wound the ribbon of fabric around the wound, staunching the blood.

His molten eyes shined with pure joy, as he gently pulled my face to his in a loving kiss, "I love you…so much."

"I love you too, Rin," I smiled back, before leaning back into his arms to rest my head on his shoulder.

Glancing behind him, I met the tortured eyes of Maliki, who was pulled to his feet by a couple of soldiers. As he was lead down the stairs I watched as he closed his eyes, and look many years older.

Turning back to my group, I scanned the group, counting faces.

"Rin?" I glanced up into his golden eyes. "Where's Ed? And Al?"

His eyes darkened, before shifting away.

"Rin?" I placed my uninjured hand on his face, coaxing him to look at me. "What happened?"

"Al was shot," My dad spoke for him, as Rin's eyes took on a tortured look. "They took him to the hospital for emergency treatment."

"He saved me," Rin's voice shook slightly. "He pushed me out of the way."

"And he would do it a thousand times over again, if it meant to keep you unharmed," My dad spoke firmly, as he placed a large hand on Rin's shoulder.

"Al's gonna be just fine!" Riza spoke up, from where she had backed off to speak into a communication device. "They've gotten him looked at, and he'll make a full recovery!" This caused Rin to sigh in relief and go limp in my arms, a muffled sob escaping him. Gently I ran my uninjured hand through his hair, which had fallen out of its band.

"You know, I think this is the start of a new era," looking up I met eyes with Jason, who was sporting a large bruise on his face from his fight with Scar. He winked at me playfully, before turning to look out to the city. "And a good one at that."

* * *

><p><strong>You know, this chapter feels really short…<strong>

**{That's probably because the last chapter was gargantuan…9000+ words I think}**

**Well! All that's left is the epilogue! {I think we'll post it tomorrow or the day after, depending on the response!} **

**Quote Time:**

**"How sad it would be, if laughter should disappear." **


	22. Epilogue

**And here we go! The final part of Beyond Fullmetal: To Change the world! {Wow…it's kinda hard to believe it's finally done!} **

**{We'll save all the mushy stuff for the end! For now, on with the epilogue!}**

* * *

><p><em>A year.<em>

_It's been a year since that final confrontation on the roof._

_It turned out that Al's lung had been scraped by the bullet while I had been up confronting Maliki on the roof. Luckily, they were able to get him to the hospital really quick, and was able to recover in no time. _

_In that time, Oliver Armstrong took over the position of Furher President when Maliki stepped down, with my dad at her side. While he isn't actually part of the official government, he plays a major advising role for Oliver. _

_The first major thing they had done was release all of the camps, and start up programs to help bring back all of the alchemists to their families. For some reason, Oliver gave most of the responsibility to me and my dad, which I love. _

_Not only do I work really well with my dad, but I love being able to help those who have lost everything stand up again. One of the other major things the programs do is reacquaint the alchemists to free lives, and society again…although it's mainly my dad who covers that aspect. Because even though we've been free for a year, I still find myself amazed at some of the things that I find while living in Central._

_While it's mainly been me and my dad, Rin has been helping out quite a bit as well. That is, he's helping us out when he's not helping out Winry in the shop. It turns out that he's not only an alchemy nut like his father, but also a gear head like his mother. The automail shop that they opened has quickly become one of the most popular shops in central, and has constant customers. _

_Surprisingly, Ed has continued his teaching, although now it's in Alchemy at the Central University. Al has also joined in teaching, only instead of college students, he mainly goes around the primary schools to teach beginners. _

_My mom now works for a local gun range, as a long range expert, while occasionally giving lessons. As it turns out, I am just like my mother, and am surprisingly accurate shot. I quickly learned that I was talented as my mother and enjoyed shooting as a recreational sport. _

_While there is still a lot of work to be done before life is back to normal, I can see a very bright future ahead of me. _

_For now, though…_

_All is well_

* * *

><p>"Pace?"<p>

There was a knock on the door, before it opened, causing said girl to look up.

Riza smiled at Pace, as she stepped into the room, and looked over her daughter, "It's almost time, do you want to help with trying to keep Winry calm? I haven't seen her this nervous in year."

Pace smiled and stood, tucking her pen into the small leather bound notebook. She placed the book into a small drawer and stood, brushing down the skirt to her dress.

"Oh, darling, you look amazing," Riza smiled gently, as Pace followed her out of the room.

"Thanks, mom," Pace smiled. "You look really good too!"

Riza shook her head, "You pull this dress off much better than I do."

Pace laughed, "I think dad would disagree, if he were able."

The two laughed, before ducking into a side room, where a worried Winry stood with Rebecca and Nelly fussing over her.

"What if I trip? What if I forget what to say? Oh, I don't know about this…" Winry was babbling as Rebecca added the last brush sparkle to her chest, and Nelly fastened the last glittering ornament to her gracefully knotted hair.

"You'll be fine," Riza told Winry firmly, as she gently pulled her to stand in front of a full length mirror. "You look stunning."

Winry stared in shock at her reflection, as if surprised at the woman standing in the mirror.

Her snow white dress brushed the ground, the silky folds shimmering with each movement. Her shoulders were bare, as the sleeves were around her upper arms in feathery bands that continued down into the v of her breasts. Just as Nelly placed the flowery veil on her head a quiet knock came through the door.

Opening the door, Pace found Al standing there, in a smooth black tux and purple tie.

"Hello ladies, are you ready?" he smiled, as his eyes traced Winry's beautiful form.

"If you mean ready to throw up, then yes," Winry smiled weakly.

Al laughed, before turning to Pace and Riza, "You ladies look wonderful, it's time to head up front now."

"Alright, Al," Riza nodded, hooking her arm with Pace and pulling her out of the room to Al's gentle reassurances to Winry.

Quickly the two went out front to see lines of chairs filled with both old and new faces.

Pace could see all of her dad's team sitting near the front, Jason and Dennis. A group of Xingnesse also sat within the seats, with a grandly dressed man sitting in the center. A group of people from Rush Valley also sat within the seats alongside various soldiers and other friends of Ed and Winry.

Quickly the two made their way to the front, where Roy, Terrin and Havoc all stood with a clearly fretting Ed. All three men were wearing identical tuxes to Al. Roy had his hair neatly slicked back while Rin's hair was pulled into a tight pony tail.

"What if I mess up? What if I forget what to say?" Ed was asking Roy, who grinned at the worrying man. Ed was wearing a fully white tux with a purple carnation rose pinned to the lapel and a silver chain hung to his pocket.

"You're a genius, Ed, you'll be fine," Roy said smoothly.

"Wow, you look amazing," Rin greated Pace with a quick kiss and a compliment.

"You look pretty good yourself," Pace smiled, glancing down at the 'Regency' purple, which was a dark purple with a touch of blue, dress. It came down to just above the knee, with a white sash. The skirt was free flowing, while the upper section was pulled smoothly to the right side. Her left shoulder was bare, though it wasn't very visible due to her hair. Her hair fell in dark curls, swept and pinned to fall over her left shoulder.

She fiddled with the purple flowers pinned to the white sash for a moment, before smiling to Mr. McAnderson, who was dressed in black robes with white trim.

At the que from the back of the aisle, everyone moved into place along both sides of the alter, while Mr. McAnderson took his place behind a large bible. Ed stood nervously in the center, waiting for Trisha to come skipping down the aisle as the flower girl, then finally for Al. In sight of Winry's parents being gone, Al stood up and took the place to give Winry away to Ed. He was accepted to have both that position and the spot of Best Man with little resistance, while Riza stood as Maid of Honor.

Suddenly, the bells started to chime, the music begins.

Pace couldn't help but think again.

_All was well._

* * *

><p><strong>So! That's the end! {It's amazing to be able to say that we have finally finished!}<strong>

**It's a very bittersweet feeling…{We've been working on this story for almost two years!} in fact, it'll be two years exactly in one month! {Oh man!}**

**{BUT! Keep an eye out, because there may be a companion one-shot coming out sometime soon!} **

**In all reality, thank you to everyone so _so _much! {THANK YOU SO MUCH} this was the first time that I have publicly published any of my writing {your welcome} and I can happily say that I enjoyed this experience. Even the criticism was amazing to receive. **

**{Thank you everyone so much for all the support that we have gotten!}**

**{A special thanks to everyone who spent time to read and favorite and follow again!} **

**A mega thanks to: Practice4morale, Mixmax300, DeyaniraSan, Digi-fanCatt, TheKawaiiPatato, Kakkorat is Cake and all of the guests for reviewing! **

**Every single one of your reviews have been read many times {By both of us!} and have helped both of us through two _very _tough years. **

**One more Final Quote!**

**"Many's the time that we feasted**

**And many's the time that we fasted**

**Oh, well, it was swell while it lasted**

**We did have fun and no harm done**

**And thanks for the memory"**

**~ROD STEWART**

**THANK YOU! **


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